By Onyekachi Eze
Pensioners in Imo State have condemned the frequent verification exercises they are subjected to by the State Government, led by Governor Rochas Okorocha.
Not only that they are tired and against the said verification exercises, they have termed such as a fraudulent act explored by the government, not only to wicked them (Pensioners), but also for their (government) self aggrandizement.
Speaking to Trumpeta Newspaper exclusively in his Owerri residence, one of the Pensioners in the State and the Secretary, Association of Retired Permanent Secretaries in Imo, Comrade Fabian Ifeanyichukwu Agba said that it’s high time the government tell Imolites how much that has been spent on the verification exercises, saying that before now, pension matters were not a problem but has become since the Okorocha’s led regime introduced the so called exercise.
Mr Agba frowned that the so called fresh verification in the Autonomous Communities as announced in Churches by the government is a terrible fraud. He educated that Pensioners are given Identity Cards which should have been the major tool for identification during the collection of their statutory pensions. Hence, reiterated that to ask for other documents is simply fraud.
The senior citizen retorted that it’s so bureaucratic for the old people to go through those documents, pointing out that those documents required by the government was still issued to genuine Pensioners by Imo State Government.
He said, ” Pensioners they are creating by their so called verification are not properly retired by Imo State government. They are manufacturing Pensioners everyday and that was why they said the bills are growing”.
Similarly, Comrade Agba retorted that even if there should be anything like verification, they should have a standard to compare, which includes a master list that accommodates the exact number of Pensioners with their original documents at the custody of the Government.
Hence, he said that the government can overload the pension bill if that’s what they want without subjecting the old retirees to untold hardship, torture and bureaucracy.
Furthermore, he fumed that the government has reduced Pensioners to zombies and has removed humanity from them which should be the worry of everyone in the State. He cried out that even the eldest he described as vegetables are also dragged out to the venues of the verification exercise.
However, Agba told this Newspaper that when this very government came into power, it was paying pensions but ran into difficulties when they sidetracked the Accountant General and resorted to be using ad-hoc staff, those who have no official designations or offices.
He opined that the governor should be thinking about the welfare of the whole State other than getting entangled with petty things.
Meanwhile, he admonished Governor Rochas Okorocha to live a legacy which should fall in line with the mantra of his party. He added that non payment of pensions/salaries is evil and can kill the economy because there will be insufficient circulation of funds.
” Rochas is a governor and a human being. People surrounding him, who are supposed to be his ears and eyes are deceiving him. They give him the impression that nothing matters and they think that they are saying many things he is not saying. Let them produce documents where governor said those things and signed. Going to the Church to announce of another verification, did any of the local tabloids carried it? Assuming you want to go to the law court now, will you produce the priest? The whole arrangement is fraudulent because if they are truly sincere, they would have published it for authenticity. There is dishonesty. Government is meant to be credible and believable. Anybody that always talk about thief, thief, watch him, he is a thief”. Comrade Fabian Agba asserted.
