The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has approved the sum of N1,284,000,000 for the payment of the retirees in the FCT, Abuja.

The Director and Chief Executive Officer, FCT Area Council Pension Board, Mr. Nanzing Nden, made this revelation while briefing journalists over the weekend.

He disclosed that the money would be used to settle 234 retired officers in the six area councils in addition to teachers in the councils.

He explained that the payment was one of the approvals the Board got from the former FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, before he left office, which the Permanent Secretary, Chinyeaka Ohaa, followed up with a directive to the treasury for prompt payment.

Nden also clarified that the benefits would only be paid to those that have submitted their documents and have been processed for payment up to April this year.

Briefing the media on some developments within the pension administration system in the FCT, he also revealed that the Board has a total liability of N138 million as outstanding liability for 31 files it received from May to date.

Nden said that the Board would stick to the plan to pay pensioners three months before their retirement by September.

He further stressed that the ideas was to jettison the old system whereby people retired and could not access their benefits for many years.

He promised that by 2020, the Board would actualise the vision to pay six months before the retirement year.

He disclosed the FCTA tender board had also approved that all the files of pensioners that have been paid through their system will be converted to e-files, adding that all the old files would be sent to FCT Archives for storage.

According to him, the board had got the nod from the administration for a consultancy for infrastructure and ICT deployment to help with system for accounting, auditing, pension administration and other services within the pension system. (THISDAY)

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