One Month After Governor’s Order, Taraba Retirees Yet to Receive Outstanding Pensions, Gratuities

·         Retired Permanent Secretaries Appeal to Gov Kefas To Increase Pension

One month after Governor Agbu Kefas directed the immediate payment of all outstanding pensions, gratuities and related entitlements in Taraba State, retirees across the state say the payments are yet to commence.

 

The directive, issued on November 16, 2025, raised expectations among thousands of retired civil servants who have endured years of irregular payments and mounting arrears. However, many retirees, particularly those who exited service in 2013 and 2014 and were already screened and cleared for gratuity, say the promised relief has not materialised.

 

Several retirees who spoke with Taraba Truth and Facts expressed concern over the delay, noting that despite the governor's clear and public order, no concrete payment schedule has been communicated to them. While acknowledging the renewed attention given to their plight, they insist that patience has been stretched thin by years of unfulfilled assurances.

 

One of them, Muhammad Shekara, a retired headmaster under the Local Education Authority (LEA) who retired in 2023, said life after service has been marked by uncertainty and hardship. According to him, since his retirement, he has received pension payments only six times.

 

"Retirement has not been easy. We survived believing things would improve," Shekara said. "When the governor gave this directive, it gave us hope that the suffering would finally end. We are still hopeful, but we want to see action."

 

Officials of the Local Government Pension Board say the delay is procedural rather than political. The chairman of the board explained that the governor directed that certain verification processes must be concluded before any payment resumes. Chief among them is the "I Am Alive" liveness verification exercise, designed to confirm the status of pensioners and eliminate ghost beneficiaries.

 

He added that outreach committees are being set up to assist elderly and incapacitated retirees, especially those in rural communities, to complete the verification process without difficulty.

 

The Ministry of Finance also confirmed the temporary halt in pension payments, explaining that monthly pensions had been ongoing before the governor's directive but were suspended to allow for a comprehensive implementation of the new order.

 

A ministry official said the directive is currently being processed and that a compliance report, as required by the governor, is being compiled. According to the ministry, the delay is part of efforts to ensure that all outstanding arrears are cleared in a coordinated and sustainable manner.

 

The government maintains that the directive remains in force. In a statement earlier issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Yusuf Sanda, the administration reiterated its commitment to clearing all verified pension obligations.

 

"Taraba State must honour those who have dedicated their lives to public service. Their dignity is non-negotiable, and attending to their welfare is our moral duty," the statement quoted Governor Kefas as saying.

 

The statement further disclosed that a special outreach team would be deployed across all local government areas, wards and villages to identify pensioners who are alive but incapacitated, with the aim of ensuring seamless payment of their entitlements.

 

For now, retirees say they are watching closely. One month after the directive, expectations remain high, but so does anxiety, as many await the translation of government promises into payments they say are long overdue.