The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has urged President Bola Tinubu to order the payment of the N75,000 palliative approved for vulnerable Nigerians following the removal of fuel subsidy in 2023.

The union said three years after the Federal Government approved the payment, none of its members had received the three-month relief of N25,000 monthly.

The NUP made the demand in a letter addressed to the President and signed by its General Secretary, Comrade Godwin Amadin.

The union said the palliative was approved in October 2023 as part of measures to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal on vulnerable Nigerians, including pensioners.

It said the approval was initially received by pensioners “with joy and renewed hope”, given the economic difficulties confronting senior citizens.

The NUP, however, said the continued delay in payment had compounded the hardship faced by pensioners amid rising costs of food, drugs, transportation and electricity.

“However, we are constrained to inform Your Excellency that no single pensioner has been paid this approved palliative to date,” the union said.

According to the pensioners, many of their members served the country for 35 years or more under specialised public service conditions and deserved the relief.

The union said the N75,000 payment would have provided some relief for beneficiaries in meeting their basic needs, particularly food and medical expenses.

It therefore appealed to Tinubu to direct the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office to commence the payment to pensioners nationwide.

The union also expressed concern that the palliative had already been paid to civil servants “almost three years ago”, while pensioners were yet to benefit from the scheme.

The NUP said it had submitted verified data to NASSCO to facilitate “seamless, transparent, and direct payment” to eligible pensioners.

The union commended the President for ensuring regular payment of monthly pensions and for approving N25bn for the implementation of pension harmonisation and the settlement of other pension arrears.

It appealed to the administration to extend the same intervention to the outstanding palliative, saying its payment would help alleviate the hardship being experienced by pensioners.

“We have absolute confidence in your ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ and your commitment to ‘leaving no one behind’,” the union said, urging the President to urgently intervene in the matter. (The Nation)