Gbenro Adeoye and Jesusegun Alagbe
Labour unions and workers on Friday criticised moves by the Federal Government to use part of the N5.8tn Contributory Pension Scheme assets in its bid to get the country out of economic recession.
Rather than become desperate and dip its hands into the fund, they said the Federal Government should look for alternative means of resolving the current economic crisis.
Ever since the country plunged into economic recession, the Federal Government had been seeking ways of addressing the situation, including its recent consideration of selling some of the country’s assets.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo recently said that with the fund rising to about N5.8tn, there would always be the temptation to tamper with it for needs such as infrastructural development, but he warned against succumbing to the urge.
The factional President of the Nigeria Labour Congress and General Secretary of the National Union of Electricity Employees, Joe Ajaero, said the Federal Government should not think of borrowing from the pension fund.
He added that dipping hands into the savings of workers, even if it would pay back with interest, would amount to illegality on the part of the government.
He said, “The fund is the workers’ money from joint contributions by them and their employers and it is in the workers’ dedicated accounts with the pension fund administrators. Now for anybody, whether the government or an individual, to take from that money for anything is illegal.
“The fact that it is kept where it is does not mean that you should access it. I am saying, as a person, that the little money I have contributed so far, nobody has the right to take it for whatever reason and I think this is the position of almost all the workers.
“And besides, the fund is insufficient; people hardly have enough to contribute; some people could not contribute up to N300,000 before they retired. Why must the Federal Government even think of borrowing from it? I think the owners of the fund will resist it. As an individual and a leader of the workers’ union, our money is not for borrowing by anybody; not even at any interest rate.”
The President of the Trade Union Congress, Bobboi Bala Kaigama, said the Federal Government has no right whatsoever to use the pension fund, given the fact that it is not an “active” participant in it, adding that workers would resist any move by the government to use the money.
He said, “I don’t know why the Federal Government is interested in the pension fund. The government is not an active participant in it, so why is it trying to be active now and why is it showing interest in the pension fund because since October last year, the Federal Government has not paid in a dime as its share of the pension scheme.
“It is only the employees’ contribution that is being put in, so what right does the government have to take from it? We say no. Second, what kind of infrastructure does the government plan to build? Is it the type that will benefit the contributors by way of houses? If the government wants to use our money to build roads that cannot stand the test of time, we will not accept that.”
The General-Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, said the only condition upon which the Federal Government could use part of the fund is to consult all stakeholders on the matter.
“Anything outside the approved guidelines for the investment of pension fund will be unacceptable because to change those guidelines will require that you revert to the stakeholders, who include the workers and the employers, so that they can revisit the matter and come out with new guidelines. Until that is done, we think it is inappropriate for the government or whoever to start new directions for the utilisation of the pension fund,” he said.
Using part of the pension fund is a “no-go area,” said the Secretary-General of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, Mr. Alade Bashir.
“It is the workers’ contribution; it is a ‘no-go area.’ It is not a fund that can be touched. It is the workers’ money, their sweat, their future and their life,” he added.
The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, said the union doesn’t trust the Federal Government in managing the pension fund well if it dips its hands into it.
Kicking against the move, he said rather than jeopardise the workers’ future, the Federal Government should look for alternative ways of bailing the country out of the economic recession.
He said, “We don’t believe in the Federal Government to manage our money. We don’t want them to touch it. They shouldn’t trade with it. We have learned several lessons in our previous dealings with the Federal Government on issues relating to money. We don’t want to start shouting at each other in the future. They cannot be trusted with our money.
“Rather, they should look for alternative sources of getting funds to bail the country out of recession. By the way, we are working together with the Nigeria Labour Congress on suggesting ways through which the Federal Government can get the country out of this economic recession and very soon, we’re going to make a comprehensive report available.”
The spokesperson for the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Mr. Emmanuel Ojugbana, also said that rather than thinking of touching pensioners’ money, the Federal Government should be thinking of selling some jets in the Presidential Fleet and reducing the salaries and allowances of the National Assembly members.
He said, “They should leave that money alone. Thinking of making the move is even ridiculous. They should not look for a quick fix to solve our problems. It’s not going to last. Instead of them thinking of touching the pensioners’ money, they should cut down the cost of governance.
“They should sell some jets in the Presidential Fleet. The National Assembly members should also reduce their salaries and allowances. They should block every leakage of our resources. By the time they do all of these, there will be money to bail the country out of recession.”
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