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The Credentials/Electoral Committee of the 2024 election for NUJ Niger State Council has shifted the Inauguration of members of the state executive council to August 3, 2024.
The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Aideloje Ojo, made the disclosure on Friday during a world press conference at the council secretariat, IBB Pen House, Minna.
He said despite the earlier vote of confidence and endorsement of the incumbent executive members of the council, the committee has ensured that all the processes for an election were observed, from selling of nomination forms to screening of the candidates.
The Chairman added that the National Secretariat of the union had accepted and adopted the preliminary report of the committee as well as the screening results.
He also disclosed that the committee has received the final approval of the national secretariat for the declaration of the incumbent State Working Committee (SWC) as unopposed and returned elected.
The Credentials committee chairman said the shift of the inauguration, which was earlier scheduled for July 27, 2024, was necessitated by the demised of Alhaji Abdullahi Abdul Paiko, who was a veteran member of the council and at a time chapel and state chairman, as well as national officer of the union during his active days in journalism.
He said that as a mark of respect and honour for the late veteran journalist, the committee had written to the national body of the union for the shift in the date of the inauguration and that the national secretariat has graciously approved for the inauguration to be shifted for a week.
The Chairman, while appreciating the support and cooperation of members of the council thus far, also enjoyed them to accord all the needed hospitality to the guest expected for the inauguration, as he assured members that arrangements were at an advanced stage towards a successful inauguration of the new state executive council members of the union.
The Niger state government has commenced the presentation of gratuity cheques to first-batch retirees in the public service of the state.
Speaking at the flag-off ceremony held at the Niger State Pension Board, the Deputy Governor of the state, Comrade Yakubu Garba, said the Governor had promised to clear all the backlog of pensions and gratuities in the state, and the event was a step towards the fulfilment of that promise.
He disclosed that over 335 retirees from the state public service were expected to benefit from the first batch and that the amount set aside to that regard is N500m, adding that they are on the list of the local government retirees, and when cleared, they would present the cheques to the beneficiaries tomorrow (Friday).
He said they were poised to pay every retiree, including dead ones, but it will be based on the availability of funds at their disposal, saying they were releasing the funds bit by bit so as to have a seamless payment exercise that everyone would be happy with.
The Deputy Governor added that they want to sanitise the system and make it in such a way that those who retired first should be paid first, which he observed would bring sanity to the activities of the state pension board and bring trust to the government.
He equally observed that the pension administration has faced a lot of setbacks in the state, which he said no stakeholder should be exonerated from the blame, but that the present administration was committed to ensuring that the right thing was done because it was disheartening that someone would retire from service for several years without accessing his benefits.
While appreciating the retirees for their patience and cooperation during the certification exercise, the Deputy Governor appealed to them to support the government in its efforts towards sanitising the pension system in the state and to pray for the success of such commitment.
He also disclosed that every retiree is to be paid 100 percent of his gratuity and not a percentage of it, and urged them to use it wisely and prayed to Allah SWT to bless it.
Earlier, the Director General of the state pension board, Nasiru Sa'idu Namaska, noted that in the past there were challenges in pension administration in the state but that presently there is about 90 percent sanity in the system.
He disclosed the introduction of the Niger State Pension Administration System (NPAS) in the state, which enables them to automate the system by carrying out biometric data capture of every retiree in the state, adding that they have the details of all retirees from both the state and local governments.
He added that with the NPAS they were able to address the issue of duplication and recycling of retirees, saying, though not completely, that they are between 90 and 95 percent okay.
"If you look at the list we generated, you will know that the pension board is a changed board. It was transparent; it was based on first come, first served, and there is an ethical standard that is followed in generating that list. You can see that the list went viral; that is to show that we have nothing to hide from the public or any stakeholder," said the Director General.
Some of the retirees who spoke at the event appreciated the state government and the pension board for their efforts towards ensuring that retirees get their entitlements and also prayed to God to continue to guide the state governor and all his subordinates.
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