Pension Crisis: Sanwo Olu to Meet Lagos Retirees Thursday
Kehinde Adeleye
Lagos State pensioners have suspended their protest over unpaid retirement benefits after Governor Babajide Sanwo Olu agreed to meet with representatives of the retirees on Thursday to address their grievances.
The development followed a protest by retirees at the Lagos State Secretariat in Alausa, Ikeja, where they voiced frustration over delays in receiving their pension benefits.
The pensioners, some of whom spent 35 years in the state civil service, said they were dissatisfied with the situation and demanded urgent action from the government.
Following the protest, the governor directed the retirees’ representatives to make themselves available for a meeting on Thursday, with the aim of opening discussions on the issues surrounding their benefits and finding a lasting resolution.
The Lagos State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Funmi Sessi, who joined the retirees during the protest, said the proposed meeting followed discussions with the governor’s office on the concerns affecting pensioners under the Contributory Pension Scheme and Defined Pension Scheme.
Sessi appealed to the retirees to remain calm and suspend the demonstration to give the government an opportunity to address the issues through dialogue.
She said the decision to put the protest on hold was based on the commitment shown by the government to engage with the pensioners.
“Today, history has been made. Retirees have come out en masse to show your displeasure against injustices,” Sessi told the protesters.
She said the meeting had produced a communique outlining the issues affecting retirees under the CPS and DPS, adding that the governor had agreed to further discussions on Thursday.
Sessi, however, warned that the suspension of the protest was conditional on the outcome of the meeting.
According to her, if the government fails to adequately address the retirees’ concerns after Thursday’s engagement, the protest would resume on Friday and continue until satisfactory action is taken.
The development has therefore placed Thursday’s meeting at the centre of efforts to resolve the pensioners’ grievances and prevent further industrial action by retirees in the state.
