BY Fredrick Nwabufo
Military pensioners under the auspices Coalition of Aggrieved Military Pensioners of Nigeria on Wednesday besieged the road leading to the presidential villa to protest against the non-payment of their pension arrears.
The protest comes exactly three weeks after the ex-servicemen protested for the same reason.
During that protest, chief of staff to the president, General (rtd) Jones Arogbofa and minister of state for defence, Mr Musiliu Obanikoro, had assured them that they would receive a positive response from the government within two weeks.
“The time they gave for us for our money to be paid has elapsed. That’s why we are back here,” said leader of the group, Col Azubuike Innocent Nass.
The Independence Day protest is the sixth by the military veterans this year.
In addition to the payment of their pension arrears, the protesting ex-servicemen are demanding the harmonisation of their pensions with the salaries of serving soldiers.
Neither demand has been met after many promises by the government.
“We went to the national assembly and they told us that our money would captured in the budget,” Azubuike recalled.
“But we discovered that anytime a proposal for our pension arrears to be included in the budget was sent to the ministry of finance, it was rejected.”
Another military pensioner, Mr Stephen Ajuah, described the situation as saddening.
“After our sacrifice to the nation, this is the reward we get,” he lamented.
“We have been denied our rights for four years. This is painful”.
TheCable’s reporter covering the protest was harassed by soldiers and forced to leave the scene prematurely.
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