ABS Retirees Cry Out Over Unpaid Soludo’s N10,000 Monthly Stipend for 22 Months, Other Entitlements

By Our Correspondent

Retirees of the Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS) have cried out over years of unpaid gratuities, pension arrears and government palliative, saying many of their members are now battling sickness and hardship after spending between 30 and 35 years in the service of Anambra State.

The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), ABS Chapter, led by Comrade Engr. Bony Ezeani, said no ABS retiree had received gratuity since 2017, while pension arrears owed its members had risen to about N150 million.

The pensioners also alleged that they had been excluded from the N10,000 monthly award/palliative announced by the state government 22 months ago, which they said other pensioners in the state had reportedly received.

The union, in a statement after its meeting, described the situation as “inhuman and unacceptable,” saying retirees who devoted the greater part of their productive years to the state were being left to suffer in old age.

Ezeani said the plight of the pensioners had become particularly painful because some were ill and could no longer afford basic medical care.

He cited the case of Mr George Edwards, a former ABS presenter who, according to him, had been bedridden for more than seven years.

Ezeani said the N10,000 monthly palliative allegedly withheld from Edwards for 22 months would have provided some assistance for his treatment, adding that several other retirees were equally struggling with illness and financial difficulties.

“We served Anambra State for 30 to 35 years. Some of us retired at 60. Today, we are treated as if we are not part of Anambra State. This is very painful,” he said.

The chairman said the union had written more than 12 letters to the Head of Service, Chief of Staff, Secretary to the State Government and Governor Chukwuma Soludo seeking intervention, but had yet to receive a response.

He further disclosed that an appointment secured with the Head of Service last month was cancelled two days before the scheduled meeting, with no alternative date provided.

Ezeani said the situation had left many retirees desperate, stressing that gratuity was particularly important to workers who had retired because it provided the lump sum needed to begin life after active service.

“Gratuity is the only bulk money a retiree can use to start a new life. Our members are dying; some are hospitalised. We are asking: is there a second category of pensioners in Anambra State?” he queried.

The pensioners appealed to Soludo to urgently intervene by directing the payment of their outstanding gratuities, pension arrears and the N10,000 monthly palliative.

They also called on civil society organisations, well-meaning individuals and the media to draw attention to their plight, saying the men and women who served the state in their productive years should not be abandoned to hardship in retirement.