Military pensioners in Nigeria have threatened to embark on a massive protest in Abuja if the government fails to clear the accrued entitlement owed the retirees for 11 months.
In a recent interview monitored by Investors King, Col. Innocent Azubuike (retd.), popularly referred to as Nass, one of the leaders of the pensioners group argued that the persistent delay in the payment of their entitlements, despite securing approval for the funds has left them grappling with the effects of the economic hardship.
Azubuike lamented that the government failed to honour its November deadline after 11 months of waiting, forcing the pensioners to “take their fate into their hands”.
According to Azubuike, the protest, scheduled for Thursday, would see the military retirees occupy the Federal Ministry of Finance to demand payment of their entitlement.
Sharing the plight of the retirees, Azubuike said, “We were told approval has been secured for the payment of our entitlements. The only thing remaining is cash-backing.
“We were told to exercise patience and assured that our long-unpaid entitlements would be settled in November. November is gone, and there is no indication of when this will happen because it’s a matter with the FMoF and not the Ministry of Defence.”
Speaking on the planned showdown, Azubuike said that the retirees have decided to take their fate into their hands to avoid languishing in suffering.
He added, “We must take our fate into our hands; otherwise, we will continue to die off in misery and deprivation. We have paid our dues in patriotic service to this nation. We demand our pension rights. This nation is not too poor to pay us such little stipends.”
Speaking on the preparations, Azubuike who described the protest as a ‘massive demonstration, concluded: “Affected people who are not in Abuja have been arriving. We have ordered mobile toilets and sleeping mats to be used throughout the protest. It is going to be a massive demonstration.”
This development comes days after Federal pensioners under the Contributory Pension Scheme have threatened to occupy the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation at Abuja over the government’s failure to clear the gratuities owed pensioners from March 2023 to November 2024.
