Benue pensioners take plight to streets of Makurdi

By Peter Duru, MAKURDI

By all accounts, it was a long-suppressed cry. 

When the Benue State Council of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, NUP, issued a 14-day ultimatum to Governor Hyacinth Alia earlier this month, it was not merely a threat of protest; it was a collective lament from thousands of senior citizens who say they have been pushed to the wall.

In a letter dated January 7, 2026, and jointly signed by the NUP State Chairman, Mr. Michael Vembe, and the State Secretary, Mr. Saater Nyamgen, the pensioners warned that they would embark on a two-day statewide peaceful protest if their long-standing demands were ignored.

At the heart of the ultimatum are unpaid pension arrears, outstanding gratuities, and the failure of the state government to harmonise pensions in line with the national minimum wage.

According to the union, the decision to protest was reached after members resolved to “let the world know about the persistent neglect” of their welfare by successive administrations.

For many retirees, the story is one of prolonged hardship. The pensioners lament that arrears and gratuities inherited from past governments have remained unpaid, forcing elderly men and women—many battling age-related illnesses—to live “cap in hand.”

They accuse successive governments of relegating pensioners’ welfare, paying little attention to their monthly entitlements and, in the process, condemning many to untimely deaths.

“Our people have died waiting. They served this state with their strength, only to be abandoned in old age,” one union official said quietly.

The figures alone tell a grim story. Local government pensioners, the union claims, are owed up to 96 months of arrears, while state pensioners are owed 42 months—a situation the retirees describe as “heartless.”

They also accuse the Alia administration of selective implementation of payment directives. While the governor reportedly ordered the payment of five months’ pension arrears to all pensioners, only state pensioners benefited, they said, leaving local government retirees completely excluded.

Those five months, according to the union, were paid in bits: one month in November 2024, two months in December 2024, one month in May 2025, and another in December 2025.

Beyond arrears, the failure to harmonise pensions has deepened the pain. Despite a circular from the NUP national headquarters approving a minimum pension of N32,000, and the implementation of the N70,000 Minimum Wage Act of 2024 for serving civil servants in Benue State, pensioners say they have been left behind.

“This has worsened our suffering. Some of our members are receiving as low as N2,000 monthly. Even retired permanent secretaries earn between N7,000 and N10,000, while their contemporaries who retired recently earn over N300,000,” the union lamented.

Patience, they insist, has run out.

“We have written several letters to the governor and relevant authorities. Nothing has come out of it. If by January 21, 2026, our demands are not met, we will mobilise pensioners across the 23 local government areas to Makurdi for a two-day peaceful protest,” Vembe said.

The protest, scheduled for January 22 and 23, is expected to take place at the Benue State Pension Commission, the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, and the Government House.

Since the ultimatum was issued, there are indications that the state government has gone into panic mode, with frantic efforts reportedly underway to persuade the pensioners to back down.

Governor assurances 

Governor Alia, however, has maintained that his administration takes the welfare of civil servants seriously. He insisted that salaries, pensions, and gratuities have been paid consistently since he assumed office.

“While priority was initially given to clearing approved arrears, deliberate steps are now being taken to ensure that all retirees within the period of my administration receive their entitlements,” the governor said recently.

He assured that retirees who left service within the last two and a half years and are yet to receive their gratuities would be paid “in a matter of days.”

“All gratuities within this period will be paid,” Alia pledged, adding that payment of other outstanding arrears would continue as funds become available.

The assurances, however, have done little to calm frayed nerves. 

Speaking to Vanguard, NUP Chairman Michael Vembe said pensioners had heard similar promises before and were waiting to see concrete action.

“We have been on this matter since the coming of this administration. Our demands are clear. We want harmonisation of pensions and payment of all outstanding pensions and gratuities, including those inherited by this government. Government is a continuum. Other states have cleared their arrears—why not Benue?” he asked.

Painting a bleak picture of life among retirees, Vembe said: “Our members are suffering. We cannot buy our medications or take care of our families because of the level of neglect. It will surprise you to know that since we issued this protest notice, nobody in government has reached out to us to discuss our grievances.”

Still, he said the union is open to dialogue if action follows words. “If they pay us by Monday, we will shelve the protest. People who gave their productive lives to the service of this state do not deserve to be treated this way.”

We are suffering 

A female retiree, who asked not to be named, said she retired in 2006 but still earns less than N30,000 monthly.

“What can less than N30,000 do for anybody in today’s Nigeria?” she asked, her voice heavy with emotion. “I am diabetic and hypertensive. That amount cannot take care of my monthly medication, let alone food. It is simply not fair.”

She accused successive governments of abandoning pensioners despite knowing that their survival depends entirely on pension income.

A retired secondary school teacher, who left service about 25 years ago after working at Government Secondary School, Makurdi, said his monthly pension is barely N5,000.

“Life has been unbearable. I am only alive today because my children support me. How can anyone survive on N5,000 a month?”

For him, the planned protest is about dignity as much as money. “We are angry because the government has failed us. The way pensioners are treated in Benue State is unacceptable. We are taking our cry to the streets so the world will know the kind of lip service our leaders pay to pensioners.”

As the ultimatum deadline draws closer, Benue State stands at a crossroads between renewed promises and exhausted patience. For the pensioners, it is no longer just about arrears and harmonisation; it is about recognition, respect, and the right to live out their final years in dignity and peace.

The post Benue pensioners take plight to streets of Makurdi appeared first on Vanguard News.