₦airaland Forum

thank you. Pardon my curiosity, but where did you get that list you posted?

@eddie7: please can you confirm if other locations were in that list. such as abuja? thank you

just finished the night of. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I recommend it to anyone who likes crime, thriller and mystery genres.

@GMB4real: i am doing very well. Still in abuja. I trust you have been good. I am hearing a lot of talk on approval for government recruitment in many of the MDA's from next year. Honestly, nerc is not pulling it weight as empowered in its Act of establishment. And to think we have to fix power to get our economy moving. Why would a commission like nerc be without a substantive head for two years now? I wish those of us qualified and without "long legs" had gotten the job years back anyways. God bless our hustles.

what about NIMC? i hear they will soon be on IPPIS and taking the paramilitary scale

@bappahman: How is it going? Please let us know when you get in. Up till now NERC doesn't have a substantive chairman. Seems NEMSA is the one showing more regulatory action in the sector. NERC has become a bit quiet.

I guess he is chamba but for political reasons he will claim fulani. Truth is the man is always silent on his true roots but from his looks, he doesnt have fulani blood

It is exactly what was posted earlier.

PTAD has posted the announcement of verification in today's edition of The Nation Newspaper. We are getting there.

@obindomanya: I believe the disengaged will also be paid some outstanding benefits from the 2006 disengagement in which some payments have not been done by BPE and OAGF e.g. insurance etc.. However, i know that disengaged staff that were not pensionable (10 years service) will not be entitled to the monthly pension but those that had spent at least 10 years and above will be entitled to monthly pension. The sure thing is that it is only PTAD that will inform everyone at the point of verification of their status and what their entitlements an outstanding are. Everyone that submitted documents to the portal a few months back should just show up for verification.

just heard from one of our top oga's. that January 2018 timetable is true. my only prayer is that they should not postpone it again. hope deferred makes the heart break.

Better late than never. This is what we have been waiting for so it keeps hope alive. though this date in January is still far, let us all be hopeful. we are soon reaching the top of the tree to start tapping the wine.

@felepumpin: thank you for this uplifting news. now we hope that ptad will do Nitel mtel immediately after delta steel. means we can be looking at first to second week in December.

Amen o. Let it not exceed november 2017 sha.

It's not about meetings. They have had uncountable meetings this year with nothing to show for it. After they agree on something with the NITEL Reps, they will now come and be talking something different later. Deliberate delay tactics. What we want is for PTAD to announce date of verification before 2017 ends. Who all their meetings epp?

SSBN: You have really hit the nail on the head. I had to ask a mid level air force officer the status of our acquisition of the JF17. To be honest, he said he is not sure we are getting it soon. Indications from PAC does not show any impending delivery to any foreign customer apart from Myanmar.
Something is really wrong somewhere and the air force top brass do not want to open up on this issue probably for security reasons.I really hope going by the defence minister's recent comment that we are going for a more potent fighter like the latest iteration of the mig29. My only issue with a twin engine jet is the higher cost of operations and maintenance. However, going by the environment we are in and surrounded by mig29's, mirage 2000's and rafales, the mig29 will be a good buy.

@Blackkukluxxlan: Thank you sir for your very enlightening write up. It is true that this Oluti and other buyer groups are motivated by greed. Heard on authority that the last bulk payment in 2011/12 some people such as the former GM legal Iyorkar got some good cut from the payment together with some union officials and even officials of BPE then because of this kind of fraudulent schemes of bulk payment. This cut was a few hundred millions on which i heard that some of them got as much as 20 million each. Imagine that. peoples sweat and you think you will enjoy that money well?
These buy out groups are very greedy. Imagine 10% of 200 billion to be shared by a few people. This is why they are pushing for pension buy out. This is peoples sweat and it will never be well with those who have those kind of plans. Life pension is the way to go. May God give all Nitel/Mtel Pensioners long life to enjoy the fruit of their labour. Amen.

Knowledge is power.

@sonya4all: It is not being selfish asking for life pension. This has been explained before on this thread. Let me explain again. Deceased staff after 2006 will be considered too depending on when they died. I understand that if lets say a deceased staff died in 2010, the staff dependants or next of kin is entitled to some pension arrears for the years after death.

Segzy3 is very right that it may be the 5000 pensioners already on the payroll before 2006 that may ultimately be the winners in all of this if we are not careful. Please Let's us be informed. I understand that Oluti has even apologised to Halita group and to PTAD but the damage his group has caused is seriously affecting us all by bringing in more delays. Even if he has apologized, he still has a large follower ship that don't fully understand the issues.

@tobore09: There are some things we are not getting clear. If you are asking for 20 years pension, then you should not come to PTAD. PTAD is only for monthly payment of pension under the defined benefits scheme for all civil servants. PTAD doesn’t have mandate to pay bulk payments. The Oluti group and other similar groups of 20 years should go to government directly and negotiate like the Nigerian airways people that used the Minister of Aviation to get their pension buy out and see whether government will even listen to them.

Truth is if the Oluti group keep sabotaging this by insisting on 20 years, then we are all losers. Like I said, earlier, government can’t give anybody 200 billion naira pension buy out now so if that is what oluti and similar groups are agitating for, then they are dreaming. Them go wait tire and their suffering colleagues go just dey die go till nobody remain again. Pension you no get, you come dey wait for years come die go. 2-0.
The majority of staff affected are those that were disengaged in 2006 or earlier so why are we stabbing ourselves in the back.

It will be better to harmonise and get the life pensionthan to keep waiting for money that wont come.

As for your allegation that Halita Aliyu owns pencom pension, I just laff as I read am. Very funny. There is no pencom pension. It is National Pension Commission (called PENCOM) which is the regulator of all PFA’s and pension related issues in Nigeria. PTAD was set up by government to specially take care of civil servants who retired before 2007 under the defined benefits scheme that includes all previous retirees before them including the Halita Aliyu you are talking about who retired in the late 90’s. What of Mashi that was disengaged and retired as MD in 2006 and all other staff of 2006? Mashi group (2006) and Halita (before 2006) are working together so all this categories of staff can benefit. They will also be entitled to life pension too. PTAD will be the one to be making yearly budget for the pensioners which will be approved and released to PTAD to pay directly to Pensioners. It will not be released to any company.

Na for every ex nitel/mtel staff to benefit na him be the matter. The Halita group met Minister of Finance and SGF last year and they were bluntly told that government doesn’t have the resources to pay pension buy out and they were advised to liaise with PTAD. They said even if Nitel wins the case in Supreme Court, government will not pay 20 years now cause of low government revenue. In fact, Falana, the Nitel Lawyer on the case advised that the case was political and that NItel should use political means that it is possible that Nitel can lose the case at Supreme Court and that would be final and closed. No way to appeal again. Currently, because of this new political moves, the Supreme Court case is not being vigorously pursued since the president has intervened and directed PTAD.

The Halita group got through to the president buhari who later approved that PTAD should look into the issue. The former DG PTAD was working on it before she was removed and that brought delays until the new DG, Sharon Ikeazor was appointed. This is what brought about renewed hope from last year till now. If not for the efforts of this Halita & Mashi group, this issue would not have reached PTAD by now.

Well let's pray for understanding and unity of all if not na all of us go lose. A house divided cannot stand.

I greet everyone. Let us stay hopeful.

Good day all.
The outcome of the thursday seminar with PTAD was not favourable at all. After all assurances to NITEL/MTEL Reps( Halita, Mashi and all), in previous meetings, PTAD has now said they can’t go ahead to start Nitel/mtel verifications because of the outstanding issues and legal cases brought about by the Oluti group and other such groups that are talking about 20 years pension buy out and what not.

PTAD categorically said until there is unity and harmonization of positions by all contending groups, they will not do nitel/mtel verification. PTAD said their mandate is to pay pension for life and not to negotiate bulk payment pension buy out. We are back to another delay again. I personally feel so pained. Seems 2017 has been wasted. The verification would have started this October but now all hopes are dashed until a common ground is found. Other agencies such as New Nigerian newspapers, Nigerian re insurance etc are being verified as we speak.

As I heard, Halita, Mashi group who are for life pension were told by PTAD to harmonise positions with all these groups but halita particularly said she will not meet with them because they feel angered that these groups have spoiled chances and brought further delays. A neutral team of negotiators made up of other former middle to senior staff is being constituted so as to meet with these 20 year groups which I understand is not only Oluti but many other groups too. These groups keep sending letters, petitions to PTAD so PTAD is also being careful. Even after the seminar, they submitted documents to PTAD and only God knows what they are saying again.

Someone here should please advise the 20 year pension agitators and campaigners that if government is to do the 20 year pension buy out, it will cost over 190 billion naira. In this Buhari regime, that is impossible for government to bring out now so they better stop dreaming about it. They should not compare Nigeria Airways own situation to Nitel. Nigeria Airways was a special case because the Minister of aviation is from katsina state, a former Nigeria airways pilot and is very close to the President Buhari, so “man know man” has worked for them. Besides, 35 billion naira for 4,000 pensioners will be easier for government to pay than nearly 200 billion naira for NITEL/MTEL pensioners that exceeds 20,000.

They should not also compare nitel/mtel to NEPA who were paid 20 years pension buy out. It was possible for NEPA to get 20 years because at the time of being privatized, they learnt from NITEL case and negotiated well. Also, they had the power to shut down the NEPA infrastructure and go on strike and bring total darkness if government did not listen to them because electricity is a critical and strategic asset. They were negotiating from a strong position and they knew it. That is why the Jonathan government had to pay them about 350 billion naira pension buy out and also because Nigeria was also booming with high crude prices so it was easy to pay them.

For NITEL/MTEL, we don’t have that advantage and strong bargaining position as nitel is not even existing as a going concern now and at year 2006, NITEL was in a weak position in the telecoms industry as GSM operators had crowded NITEL/MTEL out, so even the then government would not have still given 20 years because nitel was no longer a strategic national asset.

Just recently, government had to raise a foreign sukuk bond of 100 billion naira for the Ministry of works to fix bad roads and construct new ones all over Nigeria. That tells you government income is not in a good shape, so is it this government that will bring 200 billion naira at once to pay 20 year pension to nitel? Just one agency? It will never happen even in the next 5 years. Government will prefer to spend that kind of sum on infrastructure than on pension for a single agency. But for life pension, I understand it will amount to a little over 8 billion naira yearly for NITEL/MTEL Pensioners. Government can comfortably do it and in fact, will be happy to do that and that is PTAD’s position.

It is so sad what is happening. Many ex nitel /mtel staff I know are dying every day and suffering untold hardship, in hospitals, can’t feed well and some people are not being understanding. Let us hope these groups can understand and agree to harmonise to life pension.

WE MUST TELL OURSELVES THE TRUTH; THERE IS NO WAY 20 YEARS PENSION BUY-OUT WILL WORK IN THIS BUHARI REGIME OR THE NEXT GOVERNMENT EVEN IF GOVERNMENT REVENUE AND INCOME INCREASES. IF THESE GROUPS KEEP INSISTING ON 20 YEARS, THEN I ADVISE EVERYONE HERE TO JUST FORGET THIS PENSION THING AS A WHOLE AND MOVE ON TO OTHER THINGS.
BETTER NOT TO HAVE ANY EXPECTATION THAN TO HAVE HOPE THAT WILL CONTINUALLY BE DASHED ALWAYS.

I also hope there is nothing fishy on the part of PTAD sha.

Sorry for my long epistle.

use lime or lemon juice. it does wonders to keep odour away from the groin area

Mmmmm. Guy take am easy o. The best way to win in betting na to use good money with small odds. Change strategy.

The Nigerian airways people are lucky sha. Them done hammer. Lol. The Minister of Aviation is a former Nigeria Airways Pilot and he was the one that pushed this deal for them being close to the President. However, huge payments have their drawback in the sense that within a few years, it is easy to easily squander the money. Monthly pension payments are the best in my opinion.

A bird from somewhere informed me that the PTAD DG said there will be a stakeholders summit on Nitel/Mtel Pensioners to iron out the issues that have arisen and harmonize positions arising from all the attendant lawsuits and legal cases.This is as a result of the actions of some people such as the Oluti group and others who i am very sure are acting out of selfish ulterior motives. We know what some people did to cut deals for themselves during the last bulk payment to pensioners in 2011/2012. This means more delays. We don't know when this summit will hold. If it holds hopefully in this month of September which i doubt(knowing how government bureaucracy works) then verification may enter November. If the summit holds in October, then verification may enter December. In all honesty, I see this whole process entering first quarter 2018 or even later. I was really hopeful payments will start this year but its not looking so. God give everyone the patience.

@blackkukluxklan: I asked an insider in PTAD and he told me it could be up to two to three months after verification before the alerts start entering. He said even the civil servants that have completed theirs may start getting alert in october. All in all even after verification, i think some processes may take some time. Hoepfully if the verifcation is done in september, it may be up to november or even later in the worst case before alert starts to enter. Let's pray PTAD doesnt delay longer than septmeber else we may be looking at december or early next year. It is good everyone prepares for that eventuality. I am not saying this to discourage anyone please. Surely, the time of uncertainty has passed. It is certain the payments will commence before the year ends.

Yes it's true that the submission has been done finally. We now await the time for the start of verification. We pray it comes soon enough

yes that FCT Minister should go. he has actually not been effective at all

Bush woman wearing sunshades inside house. haba!

@eniwaye: there is no date fixed yet but i guess in the next two weeks PTAD will do an advert to announce the dates for start of verification.