Pensioners blast NLC, FG over exclusion from ₦70,000 transport relief

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru ABUJA — The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has condemned its exclusion from the newly approved ₦70,000 monthly transport allowance for workers, accusing the Federal Government and the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) of abandoning retired workers who are battling the same punishing cost of living. NUP National President, Comrade Godwin Abumisi, said the exclusion of pensioners from the six-month intervention — approved for public servants from November 2026 — was “unjust” and a painful reminder that those who spent their productive years in national service are being treated as an afterthought.

“Pensioners also depend on public transportation to access hospitals, attend medical appointments, purchase food, and other essential items,” Abumisi said, stressing that many retirees live on inadequate pensions and have no other reliable income. The union questioned why the NLC, which negotiated for serving workers, did not push for corresponding relief for retired colleagues, calling the omission evidence of the “insensitivity of civil servants to the plight of their former colleagues, now retired, whom they will eventually join in retirement.” NUP argued that the welfare of workers and pensioners should not be treated as competing interests, warning that every serving employee will one day become a pensioner.

The union also frowned at the government’s failure to pay the ₦25,000 monthly palliative promised under the Federal Government’s October 2, 2023 Memorandum of Understanding with the NLC and TUC. The agreement committed the government to pay ₦25,000 monthly for three months to 15 million households, including vulnerable pensioners — ₦75,000 per eligible beneficiary in total.

More than three years later, NUP says many vulnerable pensioners have still not received the money. It demanded that the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, led by Dr. Bernard M. Doro, explain what has stalled the payment and give a definite timeline. The union appealed directly to President Bola Tinubu to intervene urgently and extend the ₦70,000 transport allowance to eligible retirees, or provide an equivalent transport-support measure.

NUP warned that it will pursue “all legitimate and lawful avenues” if the government fails to act, insisting that Nigerians who served the country faithfully must not be discarded in retirement.