Dozens of retired staff members of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) staged a peaceful demonstration in Ibadan yesterday, decrying years of unpaid pension benefits and gratuities which they claim have plunged many of them into severe hardship and health crises.
The elderly protesters, some requiring walking aids, gathered at the FRCN Ibadan National Station premises on Ventura Road, displaying placards with messages such as “Pay Our Entitlements Now,” “Retirees Are Dying Daily,” and “Service To Nation Shouldn’t End In Poverty.”
According to the pensioners, some of whom served the national broadcaster for over three decades, the government owes them arrears dating back several years, with many claiming they have not received any payments since their retirement.
“After dedicating our productive years to serving this nation through broadcasting, it is heartbreaking that we now struggle to afford basic medication and feed our families,” said Pa James Adebisi, 74, who worked as a senior producer before retiring in 2015. “Three of our colleagues have died this year alone while waiting for their rightful benefits.”
The protest coordinator and Chairman of the FRCN Pensioners Association, Oyo State Chapter, Mrs. Victoria Olatunji, told journalists that repeated appeals to relevant authorities, including the Pension Commission (PenCom) and the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, have yielded no positive results.
“We have exhausted all diplomatic channels available to us. Some of our members have not received a kobo since retirement, while others get irregular payments that are significantly lower than what they are entitled to under the law,” Olatunji stated.
A document shared by the association revealed that over 150 FRCN pensioners in Oyo State alone are affected by the non-payment or irregular payment of entitlements, with some owed accrued rights and pension differentials amounting to millions of naira.
The Station Manager of FRCN Ibadan, Alhaji Mohammed Bello, who addressed the protesters, expressed sympathy with their plight and promised to forward their grievances to the corporation’s headquarters in Abuja.
“As someone who will someday join your ranks, I understand your frustration. While this is a national issue beyond our control at the station level, I assure you that your voices have been heard, and we will escalate your concerns to the appropriate authorities,” Bello said.
Responding to the development, the Southwest Zonal Director of the National Pension Commission, Dr. Olufemi Ajayi, acknowledged awareness of the pensioners’ predicament, attributing the delays to “bureaucratic challenges” in the release of funds from the federal government.
“PenCom has repeatedly included these outstanding payments in our budget proposals, but funding constraints have hampered full implementation. We are actively engaging with the Ministry of Finance to prioritize these payments in the current fiscal year,” Ajayi explained via telephone.
The protest has garnered support from the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), which called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene personally in resolving the lingering crisis facing not just FRCN retirees but pensioners across federal establishments.
“What these senior citizens are experiencing amounts to a violation of their dignity and rights after serving their nation diligently,” said Comrade Idowu Olasunkanmi, NUP Secretary in Oyo State. “We stand in solidarity with them and urge immediate government action.”
The FRCN pensioners have vowed to continue their advocacy until their demands are met, with plans to extend their protests to Abuja if local demonstrations fail to produce results within two weeks.
“At our age, we shouldn’t be on the streets protesting, but necessity has forced our hands,” Mrs. Olatunji concluded. “All we ask is for what rightfully belongs to us—nothing more, nothing less.”
The development comes as the federal government continues to face criticism over its management of pension obligations across various sectors, with similar protests reported in other states in recent months.
