Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba
Delta State Executive Council has approved the Harmonised Rights of Pensioners for retired civil servants, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, disclosed this to journalists at a post-Council briefing, yesterday in Asaba.
Following the rigorous process by the Professor Sylvester Monye and Dr. Kingsley Emu-led harmonisation committee, the state government has saved about N95.8 billion as pension liabilities between 2007 and 2019.
The meeting, presided over by the state Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, also approved over N800 million as compensation for the 1,000 hectares of land to host Kwale Industrial Park, which Aniagwu said was already generating appreciable interest from foreign and local investors.
Aniagwu, who was flanked by his Youths Development counterpart, Mr. Ifeanyi Egwuyenga; the state Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Chairman, Goodluck Ofobruku; Chairman of the Trade Union Council (TUC), Martins Bolum, as well as members of the pension harmonisation committee, including Monye and Emu, also expressed government appreciation to the Ndokwa people for partnering the Okowa administration and making their land available for the Kwale Industrial Park towards the accelerated development of the state.
“We are aware that to ensure the development of the Kwale Industrial Park, there was a road show in China, and investors have started coming in, and at the EXCO meeting today, the people were commended for agreeing to part with their land for development activities to take place.
“The Exco approved the sum of N800 million as compensation for the land which measures more than 1,000 hectares, and we are confident that the multiplier benefits of having the Kwale Industrial Park is enormous. The area is strategically located for investors to have quick returns on their investments,” he said.
On the harmonised pensions, Aniagwu said: “I am glad to say that the leadership of the organised labour, Chairman of NLC, Oforbruku and Chairman of TUC, Martins Bolum, who were at the Exco are also here to brief you on the issue of pension.”
Ofobruku, who expressed gratitude to Okowa for being worker-friendly, said the governor had earned himself a position in the state Workers’ Hall of Fame.
According to Ofobruku, “To address the issue of accrued rights of pensioners, Okowa set up a committee and the committee commenced work in October 2015.
“At a point, we lost hope and thought the issue will not be dealt with during this administration, but today, the State Executive Council has approved the harmonisation of accrued rights of pensioners in this state.
“In other words, it means that the Delta State Government will use the N18,000 minimum wage to calculate the pension entitlement of retirees in the state. This means that those who retired as far back as 2011, instead of the N7,500 minimum wage that was used to calculate their entitlement, the government has approved that the N18,000 minimum wage be used.
“This approval has been the labour’s cry, which has also been our struggle, and that is what the state Executive Council just approved today.
“It might interest you to note that the Contributory Pension Law in the state states that when an officer retires, he should go home with at least 50 percent of his last salary, but, when the N7,500 minimum wage was being used, officers were going home with 15 to 30 per cent of their last salary.
“So the government has approved that we implement what is in the law, and it will cost the state government the some of N37 billion from March 2011 to December 2019.
“In addition, when the contributory pension started in the state in 2007, N32 billion has been contributed to the scheme so far by the state government.”
He added: “It is interesting to know that the Okowa administration has contributed N22 billion out of the N32 billion within the last four years.
“The government under Okowa has answered our prayers as organised labour and the implementation that is to take effect immediately will meet the provisions of the law.”
Nevertheless, the Commissioner for Youth Development, Egwuyenga, in his contribution, stated that the state Exco also approved Rural Youths Skill Acquisition targeted at the illiterate and semi-literate youths in rural communities, adding that the programme would be strictly domiciled in the local government areas.
