Bauchi Govt Pays N2.369bn Gratuities To 1,285 Retirees

Bauchi State government has disbursed N2.369 billion as gratuities to 1,285 retired civil servants at the state and local government levels under the first batch of its ongoing exercise covering retirees from 2012 to 2013.

The verification and disbursement committee set up by the state government disclosed this yesterday at a press conference held at the Government House, Bauchi.

The payment was part of the N10 billion approved by Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed as the first tranche of payments to address gratuity arrears to retired civil servants.

At the briefing, the executive secretary of the Bauchi State Contributory Pension Commission, Ibrahim Inuwal, said 243 retirees who were expected to benefit from the first batch had yet to appear to collect their cheques as of the time of the announcement.

He explained that the committee had opened an additional window for the beneficiaries to complete the necessary procedures and collect their entitlements from Monday, alongside the commencement of the second batch of disbursement.

A member of the committee responsible for local government retirees, Mohammed Kabir Sizwe, said 1,285 retirees had completed the payment process, comprising 293 state retirees and 992 local government retirees.

He disclosed that 243 beneficiaries, including 84 state retirees and 159 local government retirees, had yet to appear for the exercise.

Kabir said approximately N351 million had been set aside for the outstanding beneficiaries.

He explained that about N147 million was reserved for the 84 state retirees, while N204.104 million was earmarked for the 159 local government retirees.

Another committee member responsible for state retirees, Kola Oyerinde, said the second phase of the disbursement would cover retirees from the 2014 batch, with 583 state retirees scheduled for processing.

He urged the affected retirees to appear on their assigned dates, beginning at 8 a.m. on Monday, to complete the necessary procedures.

The committee assured retirees whose records had been verified and validated for payment between 2012 and 2016 that their entitlements would be paid.

It added that the exercise would continue until Saturday, with Sunday set aside as a non-working day.

The committee also advised retirees who could not travel because of health challenges to contact the relevant authorities for assistance.

It further urged relatives of deceased retirees to comply with the required legal procedures before seeking to collect their outstanding entitlements.