— Pensioners allege 16-year backlog; LASPEC cites payments to 48,000 retirees
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
LAGOS — Pensioners in Lagos State have protested alleged outstanding pension arrears dating back more than 16 years, calling on the state government to settle their accumulated entitlements.
The protesters, under the aegis of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Lagos State chapter, took to the streets to demand immediate payment of what they described as unpaid pension arrears.
The pensioners said the protest was intended as a warning ahead of what they described as a larger demonstration if the government failed to address their grievances.
They appealed to the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to intervene and ensure the payment of their outstanding entitlements.
Speaking to journalists during the protest, the State Secretary of the NUP, Olukayode Bada, said the pensioners had not received what was due to them.
“We are here today to give the state government a warning protest against our coming mother-of-all protest because our entitlements have not been adequately given to us,” he said.
The Financial Secretary of the union, Olufunke Ogunrinde, said some of the arrears dated back to the period when the pensioners were still in active service.
“Since 2007 when we were still in service, if these arrears are paid, it will enhance our monthly payment,” she said.
Another pensioner, Bolajoko Akinlagun, a retired director and principal in the Lagos State public service, lamented the disparity between her former earnings and current pension.
“My own salary is so ridiculous. It’s not even up to N70,000.
“I retired as a director, retired principal with Lagos State. I was earning N120,000, Level 17. Now I am earning N58,000, N58,082,” she said.
Akinlagun said she had repeatedly written to the Lagos State House of Assembly over the matter.
Similarly, the Federal Representative of the National Union of Pensioners Contributory Pension Scheme (NUPCPS), Busari Isiaka, said the pensioners would escalate their demands if the state government failed to respond.
“We will move down to Abuja to tell the President, call on your son to give us our rights,” he said.
He also urged Governor Sanwo-Olu to engage with the pensioners, saying, “We have our voters’ cards. They should not forget that we have our voters’ cards.”
Lagos govt reacts
Reacting to the protest, however, the Lagos State Government disputed the claim of a 16-year pension backlog, saying it had made significant payments to retirees under both the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and Defined Benefits Scheme (DBS).
The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, said the administration of Governor Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, had prioritised the welfare and wellbeing of retired public servants.
Omotoso said the Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) had paid N168.2 billion to more than 48,000 retirees from 2007 to date.
He added that between May 2019 and the present administration, the state government had disbursed N92 billion in accrued rights to more than 25,000 retirees.
According to him, accrued rights comprise both gratuity and pension components owed to retiring officers.
He said the administration had also increased pension contribution rates in 2020 to 10 per cent for employers and eight per cent for employees, with the aim of strengthening the pension fund and improving retirees’ financial security.
Omotoso said the government had released additional funding to clear outstanding pension obligations, culminating in a N5 billion payment to 1,963 retirees in July 2024.
He described the payment as a landmark intervention that cleared the outstanding backlog in pension obligations under the CPS at the time.
The commissioner said the government had also introduced expedited gratuity payments for sick pensioners, while pension components continued to be paid directly into retirees’ Retirement Savings Accounts in line with established procedures.
He added that the government had been organising welfare programmes twice a year for retirees to provide support amid rising living costs.
For retirees under the DBS, Omotoso said the state government extended the N25,000 wage award granted to serving state workers to more than 10,000 retirees between December 2023 and February 2024.
He said this was followed by further increases of 20 per cent and 28 per cent in March 2025.
According to him, in May 2026, the state government matched the Federal Government’s N32,000 pension wage increase for its DBS retirees.
He said the intervention had increased the pension wage bill by more than 100 per cent.
Omotoso further disclosed that LASPEC had, so far in 2026, paid more than N4 billion to 1,862 retirees and was preparing to disburse another N1 billion to 700 retirees within a week.
He said the payments demonstrated the government’s commitment to addressing pension obligations and improving the welfare of retired public servants.
“Taken together, these milestones, spanning both the Contributory Pension Scheme and the Defined Benefits Scheme, reflect a sustained and deliberate commitment by the Sanwo-Olu/Hamzat administration to the welfare and dignity of Lagos State’s retired public servants,” Omotoso said.
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