By Dada Ahmed.
There is renewed hope for retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), as payment of long-awaited pension arrears and wage awards will begin in October 2025, if no technical hitches occur.
The National Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners Contributory Pension Scheme, NUPCPS, Comrade Sylva Nwaiwu, disclosed in his online broadcast to members of the union on Wednesday.
This is according to him is a fallout of a series of meetings the leadership of the union had with the National Pension Commission (PenCom) on the payment modalities and implementation plan.
“There is a very high possibility of payments commencing in October 2025, if there are no hitches, technically or otherwise experienced. Of course, we do not pray for this,” he said.
He urged members to prepare for what to expect from the forthcoming payments, noting that all arrears of pension increments from 2007 to the current national minimum wage consequential adjustment would be fully settled.
“Our monthly pensions will be increased, but we have appealed to the Commission and it has agreed to also allot a handsome percentage of the pension arrears as emblock payment to each CPS retiree,” he explained.
The union leader also announced that the ₦32,000 wage award, approved for pensioners,would be paid in full.
“If the payment begins in October as expected, all arrears of the ₦32,000 per pensioner will be calculated from August 2024, when it started, till September 2025. Subsequently, the PFAs will continue paying it monthly, as long as the wage award lasts,” he added.
Comrade Nwaiwu revealed that one of the major outcomes of the union in the process of meeting with PenCom is an agreement on a uniform payment model for retirees under both Programmed Withdrawal and Annuity arrangements.
“Another thing the union has achieved is a uniform payment formula for both retirees under programmed withdrawal and annuity. The Commission is already liaising with NICON to ensure this is implemented,” he said.
According to him, once the new model takes effect, retirees under programmed withdrawal will receive emblock payments just like those under annuity managed by insurance firms.
“While the monthly pensions of those under programmed withdrawal will be enhanced, those under insurance companies will also enhance” he assured.
He, however ,clarified that the forthcoming payments are meant for retirees from Federal Government–funded Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), adding that state governments operating the CPS will implement similar payments, whenever workers’ salaries are reviewed upward.
In his reaction to the broadcast,a members of the union thanked and appreciated the national chairman for his indefatigable ,articulate briefing, and update and prayed for his long life and good health.
” What else will we want to hear from him than this good news”, he said.
