Customs releases N7.61bn to nine PFAs for 4,237 retirees

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) at the weekend released N7.61 billion to nine Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) for payment to 4,237 retirees, as the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to improving the welfare of its retired personnel.

According to a statement released at the weekend, Adeniyi disclosed this during a dialogue with NCS retirees, where he said the funds had been disbursed to the PFAs for onward payment into the retirees’ individual accounts.

In the breakdown presented at the meeting, Access-ARM Pension Managers accounted for 1,223 beneficiaries, Premium Pension for 2,268, Leadway Pensions for 403, TrustFund Pensions for 156, FCMB Pensions for 144, Veritas Glanvills Pensions for 28, Norrenberger Pensions for 11 and Fidelity Pension Managers for four, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to 4,237.

Addressing the retirees, Adeniyi said the Service must remain strong and financially capable of meeting its obligations to serving officers and retirees, stressing that the welfare of those who had dedicated decades to the Service could not be separated from the future of the institution.

He also urged the retirees to sustain constructive engagement with the Service, saying: “I acknowledged your concerns and suggestions raised, and it is in view of this that we called for this dialogue to promote better understanding and reduce the effect of rumours and unofficial information on the relationship between the Service and its retired personnel.”

The dialogue was attended by the Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Human Resources Development, DCG Tijjani Abe, and other members of the Management Team, who assured the retirees that their concerns would receive appropriate attention at the Service’s Board and Management sittings.

The retirees expressed appreciation to the Comptroller-General and the Management Team for responding to their concerns and creating a platform for direct engagement. They also appealed to the Service to sustain the dialogue as part of efforts to strengthen the relationship between serving officers and retired personnel.

The meeting comes amid ongoing efforts to improve pension payments to retirees following the Federal Government’s decision to review the statutory provisions governing pensions, including Section 15(4) of the Pension Reform Act 2014, in line with Section 173(3) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.