South East
Abia Pensioners Decry Verification Process
Retired civil servants in Abia State have described the process of verification of state pensioners as “cumbersome, unfriendly, rigorous, stressful and harmful” to their health.
The pensioners, some of whom are between the ages of 70 and 90, expressed the concern last Friday when they spoke with newsmen in Umuahia.
The verification began last Monday.
They said that going through the process on daily basis had subjected them to exhaustion and other inconveniences with telling effect on their health.
Mr Christopher Onyemachi, 77, who said that the exercise was not properly organised, said that it should have been organised in batches to avoid the large crowd and the attendant stress.
According to him, the bank handling the exercise should have drawn up a schedule so that people who retired during a specific length of time could be verified in batches.
“They are using the verification to make us suffer.
“Why do they treat old men so unkindly? Is there no better way of doing the verification to save us the trouble we are passing through,” he asked .
An octogenarian pensioner, Mr Thomas Nwosu, also described his Friday’s experience during the exercise as the worst since the exercise began. Nwosu, who said that process was slow, further said that though he submitted his form on Monday; he could not get his serial number for his verification until Friday.
He expressed concern over the long queue that characterised the exercise adding he was not sure when it would get to his turn.
Also speaking, another pensioner, who identified himself simply as David, said that some of the retirees came from Port Harcourt, Owerri and Enugu for the exercise with the last money they had.
He said that many of them hoped that they would be paid at the venue of the exercise.
“Some of them had to beg for money to even buy sachet water and groundnut to keep life going at the venue of the exrcise,” David said.
David said that some retirees who had no transport fare to go back to their various destinations resorted to begging for assistance to accomplish the journey.
He further said that some retirees, earning as law as N1,000 pension monthly and could not cope with the rigours of the exercise stopped coming.
Mrs Ngozi Ukandu, 54, and another pensioner, who identified herself simply as Mrs Kalu, 57, said that pensioners were being ill-treated.
Ukandu said that it was sheer wickedness to treat men and women, who spent their productive ages in the service of the state in such a “callous manner.’’
She wondered why pensioners in their 70s and above should be made to suffer. The Chairman of the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners(NUP), Chief Chukwuma Udensi, earlier in an interview with newsmen, estimated the gratuities of retired state and local government civil servants in the state at over N22 billion.
Speaking on the verification in a telephone interview, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Bonny Iwuoha,said that the procedure was for the pensioners to physically present for verification.
Iwuoha said that the essence was to eliminate the names of dead and ghost pensioners in the roster of pensioners.
He said that government had observed some fictitious names after the biometric capturing was conducted for pensioners and teachers last year, a development he said necessitated the exercise.
Iwuoha, who is also a retiree, appealed to his fellow pensioners to exercise patience and show greater understanding with the state government to ensure the success of the exercise.
The police in Ebonyi State say they have discovered the body of a yet to be identified middle-aged woman in a hotel room in Abakaliki, the state capital. The spokesperson of the police in the state, Loveth Odah, stated this yesterday.
She said the body has deep cuts on the chest and neck and has been deposited in a mortuary. According to the spokesman, it was discovered at Crown Garden Hotel located along the ever-busy Afikpo road in the capital city.
Mrs Odah, who said that the victim was found in the pool of her own blood, said the suspect had been identified as one Uchenna Awoke.
She said the hotel manager, Emmanuel Eze, the supervisor, and other workers had been taken to the police station for questioning and accused the hotel management of negligence.
“The manager of the hotel, the supervisor and other staff of the hotel were taken to the station for questioning and I must confess to you that the whole thing is negligence on the part of the hotel management. How can a guest be murdered in a hotel room and days after, the management is not aware of the incident.”
“We will investigate the matter properly and I assure you, the perpetrator of the act must be arrested and prosecuted. All we are asking is for the members of the public to avail the police of useful information that will lead to the arrest of the suspect.”
The Senate yesterday passed the South East Development Commission (Establishment) Bill 2018.
The proposed commission aims at enhancing the infrastructural development of the South East zone, which is grappling with huge ecological challenges.
It also seeks to act as a catalyst for the development of the commercial potential of the zone.
The proposed legislation requires the concurrence of the House of Representatives to become a bill of the National Assembly, and the President’s assent to become a law.
Senators Stella Oduah (PDP-Anambra) and Samuel Anyanwu (PDP-Imo) jointly sponsored the bill read in the Senate on June 22, 2016.
Its passage in the Red Chamber followed the presentation of the report of the Committee on Establishment and Public Service by its former Chairman, Senator Emmanuel Paulker (PDP-Bayelsa), on the floor of the Senate.
The bill, after Paulker’s presentation, was considered clause by clause by the committee of the whole, and amendments made by the lawmakers were read for the third time and eventually passed.
In his remarks, presiding Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, commended his colleagues for a job well done.
In his words, “Every morning we pray that God should give us the grace to do only those things that will promote the peace and unity of this country.
“I believe that we have shown today that we are committed to the unity of this country, and it is this unity that will give us faith in this country.
“This faith will in turn help us to pursue peace and progress,” he said.
Briefing newsmen after plenary, members the South East caucus of the Senate, led by Sen. Enhinnaya Abaribe (PDP-Abia), thanked their colleagues and members of the committee for their efforts.
Abaribe, who spoke on behalf of the caucus, urged the President to sign the bill into law “as soon as we tidy it up and bring to him, in the interest of the unity and progress of Nigeria”.
“This will put to rest the long-drawn agitation in the South East, and the difficulties in the rehabilitation and reconciliation efforts that started at the end of the civil war.
“All things we see always will end up at the negotiating table, which is what we have done,” he said.
The lawmaker said he hoped the House of Representatives would give concurrence to the bill as it went in the Senate.
When established, the South East Development Commission would be the third zonal interventionist body in the country.
Bishop David Oyedepo, the Founder and Presideng Bishop, Living Faith Church Worldwide, on Saturday predicted that nothing would disturb the peace of Nigeria and its story would change for the better in the year 2019.
Oyedepo made the declaration at the just concluded annual prophetic gathering of the Winners’ family, christened the “Dominion”, in a satellite telecast of the church.
In the telecast monitored in Abuja, the cleric also declared that 2019 would be a year of “I have Dominion”.
“Nothing will tamper with the peace of Nigeria; the story will change for the better in the name of Jesus.
“Nigeria shall not see bloodshed, the Prince of Peace will continue to dominate in Nigeria, in Africa and Nigeria is declared blessed.
“Anywhere you step, accident is forbidden; death will not come near you and our nation.
“Anything that is of grace in my life, I freely release upon you today.
“God has opened the year 2019 to us, celebrate Him because its our year of “I have Dominion,” he said.
The Bishop added that the year 2019 would be a year of humbling testimonies for Nigeria and pace-setting testimonies.
He further declared that 2019 would be a colourful year for the nation.
According to the cleric, as long as Jesus has the final say on the issues of Nigeria, it will experience greatness.
Oyedepo said that there would be no more cause of alarm in any area of the nation and its citizens.
He advised Christians in Nigeria to delight themselves in the spirit of servant-hood, adding that the spirit of Christ is the spirit of servant-hood.
“The Spirit of Christ is the spirit of servant-hood. As you keep rising on the ladder of leadership, you must retain our spirit of servant-hood, constantly working to add value to others and be kingdom minded,” he said.
According to him, dedication is at the root of dominion, saying: “Sow yourself as a seed by being totally dedicated to God and His Kingdom’’.
He told his congregation that sacrificial giving guarantees the meeting of all their needs.
“When you engage in taking care of the well-being of others, God is also committed to your well-being,” he explained. The cleric admonished Christians would engage in meeting the needs of the needy, every barrier on their path of destiny would be crushed.
“Nobody tampers with your life, your career, your family and goes away with it because you are promoted to God’s kingdom.
“God will stand for your defence in the day of trouble. Every sacrificial giver has a defence around him in the day of trouble always have that in mind,” he said.
He reminded his congregation that the Church is not a building; the Church is a people and the Redeemed of the Lord.