Nasarawa Assembly urges govt. to release more funds for gratuity, pension

The Nasarawa State House of Assembly has appealed to Gov. Abdullahi Sule to release more funds for the payment of gratuity and pension to retirees in the state.

Mr Aliyu Dogara, the Chairman, House Committee on Finance and Appropriation, made the appeal when the management of Nasarawa State Bureau for Pension Administration appeared before the committee on its 2022 budget performance assessment on Wednesday in Lafia.

Dogara said releasing more funds to the bureau would help in the payment of gratuity and pension to more retirees in the state.

“This will go a long way in improving on the standard of living of our senior citizens and that of their family members,” he said.

He said that the committee decided to invite the management of the bureau, to assess the bureau’s 2022 budget performance.

“We have invited you to do what the law empowered us by assessing your (bureau) 2022 budget performance,” he said.

Dogara commended the bureau for its good budget performance and urged them to do more in improving the standard of living of the pensioners.

“The budget performance of the bureau is commendable; continue doing more,” he said.

The committee chairman advised the bureau management against over spending in the interest of peace and development.

He assured of the committee’s continued readiness to support their activities at all times.

Earlier, Alhaji Suleiman Nagogo, the Director General of the Bureau, expressed appreciation to the committee for supporting its activities to succeed.

He said that the bureau had paid pensioners from January to date in the state.

“For the gratuity, payment is done quarterly amounting to N150million which is insufficient.

“I want to appeal to the committee for your support for more funds in order to pay backlog of gratuity in the state,” Nagogo said.

He said that the bureau spent N1.94 billion in the payment of pension to 3,219 retirees from January to date.

The director general also commended the governor for giving attention to the welfare of pensioners in the state.