The controversy surrounding an alleged Memorandum of Understanding between the Abia State Government and the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners regarding the forfeiture of accumulated pension arrears has deepened, with both sides trading accusations.
While the state government insists that an agreement was signed, branding the NUP leadership as dishonest, the union leaders have dismissed the claim as an act of coercion, accusing the government of ambushing them into signing under duress.
At the heart of the dispute is the over 38 months of unpaid pension arrears inherited from previous administrations.
The state chairman of the NUP, Chukwuemeka Irondi, has repeatedly accused Governor Alex Otti’s administration of imposing an agreement on pensioners during a late-night meeting at the governor’s country home in Umuehim Nvosi, Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area.
According to Irondi, the pensioners were invited to a meeting scheduled for 11 a.m. but were left waiting until 8 p.m., when a former Commissioner for Finance presented them with a document to sign.
He claimed that declining to sign at such a late hour in the governor’s residence could have put him and other union leaders at risk.
Irondi further alleged that prior to the meeting, a female Special Adviser to the governor had requested NUP’s letterhead, which the union’s secretary, Uma Kalu, handed over unsuspectingly.
Backing Irondi’s claims, Elder Uma Kalu confirmed that after reviewing the document the next day, the NUP executive committee was shocked by its contents and immediately alerted both the Commissioner for Finance and the Special Adviser.
The dispute has taken on a political dimension, with Governor Otti accusing the opposition Peoples Democratic Party of backing the NUP leadership.
The governor specifically pointed out that the pensioners’ legal counsel is a PDP member, suggesting political interference in the matter.
Although Irondi acknowledged that Otti’s administration has been consistent in paying monthly pensions, he strongly denied that the union ever agreed to forfeit their backlog of arrears.
Speaking to journalists in Umuahia, Otti dismissed the pension union’s claims, stating that they signed the agreement and are now dishonestly trying to backtrack.
“Did you see that they signed the Memorandum of Agreement? I saw a newspaper report where they said they did not sign. So, you can see that we are dealing with a dishonest set of leaders. The pensioners are honest people, their leaders are dishonest. We don’t reward dishonesty,” Otti said.
The governor argued that the pensioners had remained silent for years despite being owed by previous administrations, yet they were now rejecting an offer meant to clear the backlog.
“If you made a mistake, don’t say I didn’t sign, don’t say I was deceived to sign. You went to school. Somebody was owing them. I never owed them. They kept quiet all the while, some for 10 years. And somebody comes out to say, I want to clear this backlog, and they were excited. I have told this story several times,” he stated.
Otti insisted he would not engage with the NUP leadership anymore, accusing them of playing politics.
“I have investigated it and found that PDP is behind it, their lawyer is a PDP lawyer. If they are not stupid, why would they hire somebody who owed them for 10 years to come and be disparaging somebody who offered to pay? Genuine pensioners are happy everywhere, but contractors who feel they can make money are not. I will not pay, I will not deal with them. I have finished with them. Since they have an option, why can’t they go to court? The question to ask them is: why did they not go to court in the last 10 years?”
Otti further challenged the pensioners to return the payments they have received if they are dissatisfied.
In response, Irondi criticized the governor’s remarks, describing them as unfortunate and unjust.
“I’m bleeding in my heart. I am not happy with what he said. We are not dishonest people, we are good people. We are not stupid; we are seasoned old men,” he stated during a radio program in Umuahia.
He maintained that the NUP leadership had no intention of forfeiting the pensioners’ arrears but were forced into signing the document under undue pressure.
“Yes, we signed that which was pressed on us to sign by government officials. It is only a foolish man that will refuse to sign where he is asked to sign with a man holding a gun behind him at that hour of the night,” he alleged.
Speaking at a separate briefing organized by Abians for Good Governance, Irondi elaborated on how the pensioners were allegedly manipulated into signing the agreement.
“Our situation is pathetic. We didn’t go to bargain with anybody. I was only invited to come to the governor’s residence and hear what he had to say about the problem of pensioners in the state. That was on March 23, 2024. I was not invited to negotiate with anybody. Before that time, we had gone to the governor several times and we discussed extensively with him. We even thanked him for his concerns over our welfare.
“In that meeting, an already prepared agreement was imposed on us to sign. It was imposed on us because we did not come for any negotiation. We arrived there by 11 a.m. and were still there by some minutes after 8 p.m. Nobody talked to us. I accosted the former Commissioner of Finance on why the governor had kept us waiting without anyone attending to us. Why were we invited? The ex-Commissioner said it was in the interest of the state.”
Irondi further refuted Otti’s claim that the pensioners had several days to review the document before signing.
“But recently, the governor said we were given a document to go and study for over four days. He also said that we went through the document and signed it but later went back on the agreement. What a statement! After the so-called signing of the forfeiture of the project, the next morning when we returned from the governor’s residence, we read through and discovered the rot they put in the paper. We also called the former Commissioner for Finance to demand why he brought such a document for us to sign. But what he told us is not worthy to be said here.”
Describing the signing process, Irondi added:
“The document was given to us at 8 p.m. There was no room to read it, and they asked us to sign with the former Commissioner for Finance playing a bad role. The former Commissioner came with the document, placed it before me, and held it himself for me to sign. I’m over 70 years old, I flashed back on why they kept us from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and gave us a document to sign by that hour.
“I realized that I may be in danger if I declined to sign the document at that ungodly hour. Just imagine the former Commissioner for Finance showing me a document and personally holding it for me to append my signature without giving me the chance to read through. I wouldn’t have refused to sign it because it is only a mad man who will argue with a man holding a gun.
“Before the former Commissioner did what he did, a lady official had asked for the NUP’s letterheaded paper, which was given to her without us suspecting that she was up to some game. With our letterheaded paper, they wrote that we have forfeited the arrears of pensions owed pensioners.
“How can they say we agreed to forfeit our pensions? It is not the truth.
“We only came to the governor’s residence to hear what he had to tell us, not knowing that they had gone to cook up what was unacceptable to anybody.”
A Standoff with No Resolution in Sight
As both parties remain locked in their positions, the controversy continues to stir political and social tension in Abia State. Pensioners are left uncertain about the fate of their unpaid arrears, while the state government maintains its stance against further negotiations with the NUP leadership.
