Pensioners of the defunct Nigerian Airways on Tuesday staged a peaceful protest at the Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMA), Ikeja, Lagos, over non-payment of their N45 billion accumulated pension.
The ex-workers claimed that the Federal Executive Council had approved the payment of N45 billion since September 2017.
The protest which began at about 9.30 a.m. worsened vehicular movement around the airport environment for over two hours.
The aggrieved ex-workers of the former national carrier liquidated by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in September 2004 blamed the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, for the delay.
They carried placards with various inscriptions such as “President Buhari, save us from Kemi Adeosun now; “Mrs Adeosun, your action and inactions are man’s inhumanity to man;” “Madam Minister of Finance, where is our pension and entitlements? Pay us now.”
The hundreds of protesters chanted solidarity songs, and demanded explanation from the minister on the cause of the delay in the payment.
According to the protesters, the N45 billion is only a part of the N78 billion pensions owed them by government.
Addressing the protesters, Chairman of Nigerian Airways’ Branch of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Mr Sam Ezene, appealed to President Muhammedu Buhari to direct Adeosun to release the pension entitlements.
Ezene noted that the affected pensioners had earlier pleaded with the Ministry of Finance to release the N45 billion without response.
“The Federal Executive Council in September 2017 approved the payment of N45 billion which was part of pension entitlements of the defunct Nigerian Airways workers.
“In spite of our peaceful protests at the Ministry of Finance and the National Assembly in December, our entitlements have not been paid.
“There is lack of hope and depression which is killing our members and this is why we want the public to know that we are going through a lot of pains and anger.
“In as much as the president has approved this money, he should ensure that we are finally paid.”
Ezene said while the minister had insisted that approval for the release must come from the National Assembly, findings had shown that there was “nothing like Nigerian Airways before the legislators.”
He said if the minister did not react to the pensioners’ protest by the end of February, they would shut the ministry until they got paid.
