FG clears 1,330 NIS retirees 17-year severance allowance

After a 17-year delay, the Federal Government has paid the outstanding severance allowances of 1,330 Nigerian Immigration Service officers who retired between 2006 and 2007, bringing relief to the affected retirees.

During a press conference in Abuja on Friday, the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms, Mr. Dasuki Arabi, revealed that a nationwide verification exercise, spanning all six geopolitical zones, resulted in the successful verification and payment of outstanding benefits to 885 officers.

The Director-General acknowledged that the verification exercise, which spanned from November 27, 2023, to January 20, 2024, was a collaborative effort between the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Federal Civil Service Commission, and the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation.

“We have finally resolved the outstanding severance benefits of 1,330 disengaged officers from the 2006/2007 reform programme. This achievement serves as a beacon of hope for other parastatals and MDAs facing similar challenges,” Arabi added.

Arabi equally thanked the FG for its “unwavering commitment to addressing this long-standing issue, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda.”

He noted that 17 verified officers could not be paid due to some inconsistencies in their account details, but are being addressed by the stakeholders’ committee.

The thediscovererng.com had reported that ten months after their recruitment, NIS officers were yet to receive their salary arrears despite being captured on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

The personnel, whose appointment letters date back to August 15, 2023, claimed they had not been paid between September 2023 and February 2024.

Mr. Ola Gbadamosi, the National Chairman and Coordinator of the National Association of Retired Immigration Officers, acknowledged the payment to the association’s members, but pointed out that some beneficiaries were unable to be traced due to inaccuracies and mix-ups in the biodata of the next of kin for the late officers.

“I want to thank the DG, BPSR and the office of the Accountant-General and Auditor-General of the Federation for their intervention in making the payment a success. It has been 17 years of struggle but it’s a reality today.

“Although we have not been able to fully verify some of our members, about 400 of them. We are working to ensure that everyone is fully captured,” Gbadamosi said.

He further called on the government to resolve the lingering issue of salary arrears disparities, which have been owed to the retirees for 17 years.