Relief as PenCom Proposes Amendments to PRA to Address Low Pension for Police Officers, Others

• Police pension unveils whatsApp platform to improve pensioners’ access to RSA services, boost transparency

James Emejo in Abuja

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has initiated  moves to address shortfalls in retirement benefits under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), with specific proposal to improve pension outcomes for police officers and other and other civil servant retirees.

This followed successive reviews of the Pension Reform Act (PRA) that revealed that earlier contribution benchmarks had become inadequate in meeting long-term retirement obligations.

The move is expected to douse current police retirees’ appetite to exit the CPS on account of low pension compared to their peers.

But pension is only a function of salary earned while in service – meaning that if a worker is paid poorly, this also impacts on their pension outcome.

Director General, PenCom, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, at the pension conference last December, vowed to take up the issue of low pension for police officers.

This came as acting Managing Director/Chief Executive, NPF Pensions Limited, Mr. Muhammad Dutse, yesterday  unveiled a new WhatsApp-based service platform aimed at improving access to pension information, strengthening communication with retirees, and enhancing transparency in the management of Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) across the country.

Dutse said pension remained a function of salary, explaining that initial assumptions under the PRA—based on a 7.5 per cent contribution from employees and government—were later found to be insufficient after years of implementation.

He stated that after subsequent adjustment that raised contributions to about 10 per cent, further assessments over time had again shown that the structure still falls short of ensuring sustainable retirement income for workers.

He said, “Another 10 years later, we realised that that is also not adequate. And that’s what is affecting our retirees today.”

According to him, there’s currently a proposal by PenCom to the federal government to “take care of these gaps” and reposition the system to deliver more sustainable pension outcomes once implemented.

Under the proposal, contributions would be raised from 10 per cent to 15 per cent during the period of service, a move expected to strengthen RSAs and improve future benefits for officers.

It was further learnt that the PRA is currently being reviewed to address the welfare of police officers under the CPS.

Dutse added that Police Pension Committee had already engaged relevant authorities with a proposal to increase monthly pension contributions for police personnel.

The objective he said, was to ensure that, within a few years, retirees are better able to rely on their RSA balances without requiring additional government augmentation.

He said, “That will, in the near future—five to something years later—the RSA will be able to take care of their professional needs without having to go to government to augment what the RSA will do.”

The proposed amendment to the PRA will also address any other gaps in the legislation.

He further expressed optimism that ongoing reviews and consultations would ultimately produce stronger policy outcomes capable of improving retirement security across the public service.

However, on the WhatsApp initiative, Dutse said the platform was designed to bridge long-standing service delivery gaps and bring pension services closer to beneficiaries, many of whom are spread across different parts of the country.

He noted that the complexity of pension administration, rising cost of living, and challenges in accessing timely information had made it necessary for the institution to adopt more efficient digital tools to support retirees.

According to him, the WhatsApp platform is expected to serve as a key interface between pensioners and the pension administration system, allowing users to access essential services without physical visits to offices.

He told THISDAY, “We try to move along with that challenge so that we will make it easy for our clients to access the information we are going to work on,” adding that the initiative was part of broader efforts to modernise service delivery.

He explained that the platform would provide pensioners with real-time access to key information, including RSA balances, RSA account statements, fund performance updates.

He said, “Clients will be able to check their RSA balance system, download RSA statements, check fund performance, and view daily unit prices,” noting that these features were central to improving transparency and user experience.”

He said the the platform would also enable pensioners to monitor data relating to their accounts, while ensuring that operations remain compliant with national data protection regulations.

The NPF Pension boss stressed that while the system would provide broad access to information, strict security architecture had been put in place to protect sensitive data and prevent unauthorised access.

He said, “If you are not authorised, you can only get basic information. You cannot get any confidential information concerning our clients.”

He further explained that sustainability had been prioritised in the design of the platform, with provisions made for continuous funding and subscription payments to ensure uninterrupted service delivery.

On the choice of WhatsApp as the delivery channel, Dutse said the platform was selected due to its global acceptance, reliability, and continuous technological improvements since its acquisition by Meta.

He added that the system would continue to evolve, with additional security features and service enhancements expected over time.