NewzBy Olasunkanmi Akoni LAGOS — Tension rose in Lagos on Monday as policemen attached to the Lagos State Command reportedly fired tear gas to disperse pensioners protesting at the Lagos House and Lagos State House of Assembly, Ikeja, over outstanding pension adjustments and wage awards. The pensioners, under the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), had gathered at the government premises to demand the implementation of approved pension increases, payment of arrears and other benefits due to them. The protesters said their demands centred on outstanding pension enhancements and wage awards, among other welfare issues.
The use of tear gas to disperse the protesters heightened tension at the scene, with the retirees expressing displeasure over what they described as the use of force against them while demanding their entitlements. The pensioners had earlier issued August 31 as a deadline for the payment of their outstanding pension enhancements and wage awards. Retirees reject LASPEC’s position Meanwhile, the Lagos State Retirees Association has rejected the Lagos State Pension Commission’s (LASPEC) account of government support for pensioners, insisting that outstanding pension adjustments, wage awards and other arrears remain unresolved.
The association made its position known in a rejoinder signed by its Chairman, Comrade Olarewaju Caleb, in response to an earlier statement attributed to the Director-General of LASPEC, Mr Babalola Obilana. Caleb described the LASPEC statement as misleading and out of context, saying it prompted pensioners to embark on protests across local government areas in the state. “The demand for pension increase/wage award is the crux of our agitation, which the Constitution of Nigeria guarantees,” he said.
He noted that President Bola Tinubu had implemented similar measures for federal pensioners and recalled that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had, at various fora, promised to implement them for Lagos State pensioners. The chairman also disputed the presentation of billions of naira reportedly spent on retirees’ benefits, arguing that the funds should not be presented as gifts from the state government. “The billions of naira displayed in the write-up is a diversionary attempt to confuse the public.
It is the established responsibility of LASPEC to perform its constitutional role in protecting and disbursing the retirees’ funds entrusted i… Police officers have reportedly fired teargas at pensioners protesting at the Lagos House in Ikeja over unpaid pension increases, wage awards and other outstanding benefits. The protesters, comprising members of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) and retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme, gathered at the government premises on Monday to demand action from the Lagos State Government.
The pensioners called for the implementation of approved pension increases and wage awards, as well as the payment of outstanding pension arrears and other entitlements they said had remained unpaid. The demonstration was disrupted after police officers reportedly fired teargas at the retirees, forcing some of them to flee the premises. The action reportedly heightened tension at the scene, with the pensioners expressing dissatisfaction over the use of force against them while they were seeking payment of their entitlements.
Summary from source