Bauchi Pensioners Want Outstanding Gratuities Cleared

The Bauchi State Council OF THE Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has appealed to Governor Bala Mohammed to clear the backlog of gratuity to retired civil servants before the expiration of his tenure.

The state chairman of the union, Comrade Abdullahi Alhassan Misau, made the appeal yesterday during the 2026 Pensioners’ Day celebration in Bauchi.

Misau also urged the governor to consider the payment of arrears to pensioners whose names were omitted from previous payments, as well as those who were underpaid.

He said the omissions affected pensioners from two to 30 months, while others were also underpaid during the period.

The NUP chairman, however, commended the governor for his recent initiative to settle the outstanding gratuities with his approval of N10 billion for the exercise.

He said N3 billion had been released for the payment of gratuities to pensioners who retired between 2012 and 2013, while the files of those who retired between 2014 and 2016 had been screened for payment.

He said an additional two million naira had also been approved for monthly payments to pensioners, describing the gesture as an indication of the governor’s concern for their welfare.

“In addition to the above N2,000,000 was approved for monthly payment paid monthly to our pensioners in the previous months. Therefore we remain grateful to His Excellency for his concern for our pensioners,” Misau said.

The NUP chairman also appealed to the state government to construct a permanent office for pensioners, noting that the union had already acquired land for the project. “We have been living in rented quarters for over 30 years,” he said.

Misau further commended Governor Bala Mohammed for being, according to the union, the first governor in the 19 northern states to implement the N32,000 minimum pension for pensioners.

He said the implementation attracted the attention of the NUP national headquarters in Abuja and subsequently led to the governor being honoured as a “friendly governor to pensioners in Nigeria.”

“I am convinced that, with His Excellency’s concern for our pensioners, he will consider the plight of pensioners and pay our pensioners accordingly, as well as address all other requests presented to him, including the construction of a permanent pensioners’ office,” he said.

Also speaking, the Bauchi State Head of the Civil Service, Barr. Mohammed Sani Umar, assured pensioners of the state government’s commitment to settling outstanding gratuity and other arrears.

Umar, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Establishment, Dawut Mahmud Yakubu, said the government would pursue the release of the remaining N7 billion out of the N10 billion earmarked by the governor for the payment of gratuity.

He said the N3 billion already released represented a significant step towards addressing the longstanding financial obligations to retired civil servants.

The Head of Service stressed that the government had a responsibility to cater for the welfare of people who had contributed to the development and growth of the state during their years of active service.

He assured the pensioners that the government would continue to pursue the payment of outstanding gratuity until the backlog was substantially cleared.

Umar noted that every worker currently in active service would eventually retire, stressing that addressing the welfare concerns of pensioners was therefore in the interest of all civil servants.

On the request for a permanent office for the pensioners, he promised that the government would make efforts to ensure that the union was provided with an office.

He further reiterated the administration’s commitment to addressing outstanding salary arrears, pensions and gratuity owed to retired civil servants.

LEADERSHIP reports that recently the Bauchi State government has commenced the disbursement of N10 billion as the first tranche of payment of long-outstanding gratuity arrears to about 1,700 retired state and local government civil servants.

The exercise is aimed at clearing part of the gratuity liabilities inherited by the administration and providing financial relief to retirees across the 20 local government areas of the state.