Some members of the Nigerian Legion have appealed to the Federal Government to pay the outstanding 20 per cent pension arrears owed them.
The Commandant of the legion, Patrick Ajah, made the appeal during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja.
Speaking after the 2015 Armed Forces Remembrance Day Celebration parade, Ajah said that many of the group’s members still suffered untold hardship due to non-payment of the arrears.
He said the Federal Government owed them pension arrears and that payment of such arrears would ease the sufferings of ex-servicemen.
He said: “Some people are not on the pension list and most of them are suffering a lot because no one cares for them.
“But those that are on the pension list, government is paying their pension, but we are talking about our outstanding arrears of 20 per cent, which is creating a lot of problems as they keep promising us.”
Ajah, however, commended the Federal Government’s efforts in ensuring that those who laid down their lives for the unity of the country were remembered.
He also appealed to the government to do all it could to ensure peace in the country.
He said: “We are celebrating this day in memory of the fallen heroes.
“Nigeria should not do anything to recall what took place between 1967 and 1970 because war is a bad thing.
“We must try to do everything to avert such tragedy.
“We witnessed a very sad moment at that time.
“Many lives were lost, many property were destroyed and rehabilitation, reconciliation and reconstruction took time.
“We must be very careful to avert such.”
Another legionnaire, Basil Marcus, said it was a good thing that government remembered the fallen heroes, but called on the government to improve the welfare of the pensioners.
“Sometimes we get our welfare but sometimes they don’t pay us but we want them to improve our welfare so that we can live a better life,” Marcus said.
Another veteran, Monday Ekpo, told NAN that the arrears of the pension owed them had not been paid for a long time.
Ekpo urged government to do everything possible to pay them.
He said: “Government has been owing us these arrears for some years.
“I appeal to them to pay us so that we can take care of our families.”
However, the Public Relations Officer of the Military Pensions Board, Squadron Leader Gboko Tsekaa, told NAN that 33 per cent of the money had been paid but that the remaining 20 per cent had yet to be paid.
Tsekaa said the Federal Government was aware of the situation and it had been making efforts to pay up.
He said the board had been working assiduously to ensure that it was paid.
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