The Association of Retired Federal Senior Public Officers of Nigeria (ARFESPON) has recently voiced its concerns regarding the operations of the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) and its alignment with the federal government’s proposed payment structure for pensioners in the country. In a statement issued, ARFESPON called upon PTAD’s management to actively support the government’s plans and expressed dissatisfaction with the agency’s handling of the new national minimum wage for pensioners.
According to ARFESPON, PTAD allegedly deviated from government-approved guidelines by rejecting a payment table established by the Salaries and Wages Commission, a table that had received federal government approval. This deviation, as highlighted by the association, has led to the introduction of an alternative pension benefits payment table by PTAD. This unilateral decision, in the eyes of ARFESPON, has disrupted the standard process, causing a demotion of officers from their genuine grade levels upon retirement to lower salary grade levels.
The association also took issue with the Federal Ministry of Finance, accusing it of being indifferent in carrying out supervisory functions over PTAD’s operations. The allegation is that PTAD, in essence, created a parallel government by introducing its own payment table, thus undermining the established protocols for pensioner remuneration.
President of ARFESPON’s Lagos Chapter, Olufemi Odewabi, made these statements during the group’s end-of-the-year party in Lagos. He emphasized that the shortcomings of PTAD had been brought to the attention of various functionaries and offices, including the Head of Service and Secretary to the Government of the Federation. However, to the dismay of ARFESPON, no concrete actions have been taken to address these concerns.
ARFESPON
Mr. Odewabi expressed frustration, stating, “However, the anomalies have been highlighted by various groups for a long time. Non-action is equal to compromise and endorsement of the poor attitude of PTAD.” This highlights the growing impatience and discontent within ARFESPON regarding what they perceive as a lack of responsiveness from key government offices in rectifying the issues with PTAD’s operations, as reported by gaurdian.ng
