Unpaid salaries: Osun pensioners protest, lament members’ deaths

Posted by admin Headlines, Osun, State News Wednesday, June 10th, 2015

Retired workers under the aegis of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners in Osun State on Wednesday staged a public protest over the non payment of their pensions for the past seven months.

The Chairman of NUP in the state, Dr. J.A. Olunlade, in the speech he circulated to journalists lamented the death of many of his colleagues, who he said died because of lack of money to buy food and drugs.

The pensioners stormed the House of Assembly in their hundreds to register their displeasure about the issue of their pensions.

Although, a large number of security operatives was deployed in the Assembly, but the security men did not harass any of the aged protesters

Olunlade said, ” Till the time of this demonstration, pensioners in Osun State are yet to be paid seven month pensions, from November 2014 to May 2015.

” Empty promises and insensitivity of the government to the plight of pensioners have led to the untimely death of many and inability of many to meet their financial obligations.”

Some of the pensioners told journalists that they were sick and could not raise money to treat themselves.

One of the supporters of Governor Rauf Aregbesola, who was dressed in an ‘agbada’ with the governor’s portrait luckily escaped being attacked.

On sighting the man, some of the irate pensioners started shouting “thief, thief catch him, he is one of them but the man ran away.

The Deputy Chief Whip, Mr. Taiwo Adeyemi, who addressed the pensioners said the Assembly understood their plight.

He said the state government was working hard to ensure that the backlog of salaries were paid.

Adeyemi appealed to them to exercise more patience while promising that the lawmakers would still hold a meeting with the governor on the issue.

-Punch

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