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The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) on Tuesday, said it has deployed five ambulances and 50 wheelchairs to verification centres in Lagos to tackle any emergency.
The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of PTAD, Mr Emma Okondo, told newsmen in Lagos that the machinery was put on ground to ensure that the sick and infirm were perfectly taken care of at the centres even as he declared, no emergency had been recorded since the exercise commence.
“We urged pensioners not to entertain fear but show up for the verification. The agency has put in place necessary facilities to support our retirees.
“The verification is done to assess the documents of the pensioners for monthly pension payment without delay.” he said
Okondo also said a total of 21,295 pensioners were expected to be verified in five centres in Lagos namely; Alausa, Yaba, Ketu, Amuwo Odofin and Agege.
“Also, 108 staff of the agency had been deployed to the five verification centres’’, he said.
Okondo said the verification that kicked off on Sept.18 would end on Sept. 29.
He said it was the second phase of the exercise in the South West zone since the one which was conducted in Osun, Ondo and Ekiti in August.
“It comes after similar exercises in the four zones involving 64,825 pensioners who were not pay rolled for years but now verified and being paid with arrears’’, he said
Okondo, however said the agency was facing a challenge of some pensioners that are not under the Defined Benefit Schemes (DBS) turning up for the verification.
“Only pensioners of states with federal share employed before March 3, 1976 and retired before March 2011 are to participate in the verification.
“Also pure federal retirees before June 30, 2007 are benefactors’’ he said.
PTAD is an agency under Federal Ministry of Finance established in August 2013 to manage pensions under DBS for Federal pensioners who retired on or before June 30, 2007
