Benue pensioners threaten protest over unpaid arrears

The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) in Benue State on Sunday issued a 14-day ultimatum to Governor Hyacinth Alia, threatening a two-day peaceful protest in Makurdi over unpaid pension arrears, gratuities and non-harmonisation of pensions in the state.

In a letter dated January 7, 2026, jointly signed by the State Chairman, Michael Vembe, and State Secretary, Saater Bur Nyamgen, the union said the ultimatum followed a resolution reached at its State Council meeting held on September 11, 2025.

The pensioners lamented the continued non-payment of pension arrears and gratuities inherited from past administrations, amounting to 96 months for local government pensioners and 42 months for state pensioners.

They further alleged discrimination in the payment of five months’ pension arrears earlier approved by the governor, noting that while state pensioners benefited from the payments between November 2024 and December 2025, local government pensioners were excluded.

The union also faulted the Benue State Government for failing to harmonise pensions to the N32,000 minimum pension in line with a federal directive and the N70,000 Minimum Wage Act of 2024, which has already been implemented for serving civil servants in the state.

According to the NUP, the failure to implement pension harmonisation has worsened the plight of retirees, with some pensioners reportedly earning as low as N2,000 monthly, while some retired permanent secretaries receive about N7,000, compared to over N300,000 earned by recently retired counterparts.

The pensioners warned that if their demands were not met by January 21, 2026, they would mobilise retirees from the 23 local government areas of the state for a peaceful protest on January 22 and 23, 2026.

The union noted that the planned protest will take place at the Benue State Pension Commission, the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, and the Government House in Makurdi.

They said that already copies of the letter had been sent to key government officials, security agencies and labour leaders in the state for information and necessary action.

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