The Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), Nasarawa State, who is also the Chairman of Lafia Local Government, Comrade Aminu Mua’zu Maifata has revealed that Council Chairmen have been under spiritual and physical attacks.
He said, the attacks were occasioned by delayed payment of Pension and gratuities of LG retirees in Nasarawa State.
“It may interest you to note that some pensioners in the State were attacking all the 13 local government chairmen through voodo over lingering pension and gratuity.
Maifata disclosed this in an exclusive interview shortly with CAPITAL POST in Lafia, after he presented 2021 appropriation budget to the Council Legislators for approval.
He revealed that the State House of Assembly has enacted a law that mandated all LG Councils to contribute 15% of FAAC allocation to Nasarawa State LG Pension Bureau which they were religiously doing.
“And I will tell you without any contradiction that none of the Local Government Councils defaulted in payment of its 15% pension contributions.
The ALGO boss further stated that there was never a month without remitting such money into the account of pension board for upward payment of pensioners in the local government councils in the State.
He lamented that they met a system where the 15% contribution to the Pension Board could not shoulder the pension bill monthly for the fact that the computation by old pensioners were highly doctored.
“I will say the system was highly adulterated and over bloated based on wrong computation.
“This raised the pension wage bill higher than the 15% monthly contribution by each Local Government.
Maifata confirmed that, Governor Abdullahi Sule has given them the go ahead to search for competent audit firm to assist in re-computation of the whole pensioners in the state.
“We are on course of doing such, so that the wrong could be corrected for future purposes and we will do so that.
“There is no Local Government chairman that refused to contribute to pension or pensioners as at when due”, he continued.
“So all these accusations by pensioners especially their leaders against Local Government Council Chairmen that they refused to pay them couldbin fact be seen in the records that its wasn’t like that.
The LG boss said they were unwilling to join issues with Pensioners as senior citizens, but used CAPITAL POST to
to appeal to the pensioners to respect themselves which according to him, they are not afraid of the pensioners but only respecting them.
