Why Nigerian Governors Must End the Long Wait of Retirees Entitlement.

By Iyabo Titilola Ola-Olorun

A retired magistrate from one of the southwestern states who retired in 2019 after serving the government for almost twenty years lamented how he is yet to be paid his gratuity six years down the line.

He said that though the government has started paying his monthly pension of about one hundred and twenty thousand naira, it has not been easy for him to survive. When his gratuity was computed, it amounted to a little over four million naira only. This amount if paid to him today has lost its value.

If he had been paid five years ago, though small when compared with the severance packages our political office holders receive after serving the government for four years, he would have been able to buy himself a tokunbo car at least. His inquiry revealed that the government is attending to those who retired in 2015. Like the state where this magistrate had worked, many states have backlogs of unpaid gratuities.
Retirement should be a time of rest, honour, and dignity, a well-earned reward after years of faithful service to one’s state and country.

Yet for many Nigerian pensioners, it has become a season of pain and despair. Across several states, thousands of retirees are languishing, waiting endlessly for their gratuities. Some have waited for years; others have died waiting. This is not mere administrative delay; it is a grave injustice. For a magistrate or judiciary staff, it is really demoralizing and shameful if, after serving in the justice sector, this type of injustice is being meted out. It is truly unfortunate. Another retired lecturer from one of the state polytechnics also has the same story to tell. He retired several years ago and is still waiting for his gratuity.

A gratuity is not a gift, neither is it a government favour. It is a legal entitlement, a token of appreciation for decades of service rendered. To withhold or delay it is to rob pensioners of what is rightfully theirs. Many of these men and women devoted the best years of their lives to public duty, often working under difficult conditions and low pay. Now, in their old age, when they should be cared for, they are forced to beg, borrow, or depend on charity to survive. The emotional and physical toll of such neglect is immense, a quiet cruelty that society has come to accept as normal.

The injustice of delayed gratuity payments goes beyond personal hardship. It strikes at the very heart of justice, accountability, and good governance. When the state fails to honour its obligations to retirees, it undermines the trust of those still in service. It sends a dangerous message that loyalty and integrity are not rewarded and that one must fend for oneself by any means. This fuels corruption, weakens morale, and erodes faith in public institutions. No wonder many civil and public servants falsify their ages in order to remain in service for a longer period, while others collect bribes indiscriminately.

It is time for a change. Governments must treat the prompt payment of gratuities as a sacred duty, not a secondary obligation. Most political office holders and leaders seem to prioritize re-election to the detriment of their duty to the electorate.

Election funding should not take priority over the payment of pensioners’ gratuities. Funds should be set aside and disbursed immediately upon retirement, with transparent systems that ensure accountability and fairness. Pensioners deserve more than sympathy; they deserve justice. They gave their strength to build the system. The least the system can do is honour them in their twilight years.

The lateness in paying gratuities has led to corruption among workers in many pension offices, as some help desperate pensioners by smuggling their names into the payment list in exchange for a percentage of their gratuity. For example, if the state is paying 2010 pensioners, someone who retired in 2025 might be able to get his gratuity immediately after retirement if he agrees to pay some officers a percentage. This is unacceptable and cruel. For someone who has served meritoriously to be subjected to this type of extortion in order to be paid his entitlement is sadistic.

Auditing any state pension office will reveal this anomaly. It will be discovered that in spite of the government’s claim that it is still paying backlogs, those who are able to negotiate their gratuity or those who are highly connected have been paid.

To continue denying pensioners their gratuity is to turn service into suffering, and no just society should ever allow that.

An appeal to the conscience is being made to the Governors of each state of the Federation of Nigeria that they should remember that whatever they do today will be their legacy. They should prioritize the payment of gratuities to those who have retired. We look forward to a day when a civil servant would retire in one of the Nigerian states and within the same month collect his gratuity.

During their swearing-in ceremony, Nigerian Governors take the Oath of Allegiance and the Oath of Office, both prescribed in the Seventh Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.

A phrase in the Oath of Office states as follows: that in all circumstances, I will do right to all manner of people, according to law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will, and that I will devote myself to the service and well-being of the people of Nigeria.

The well-being of retired civil or public servants is not well addressed as long as their gratuities remain unpaid. Political office holders who spend just four years in office are promptly paid their severance packages, which run into millions.

There is a need for state governors to prioritize the payment of gratuities and clear the backlog. It will boost the morale of those who are honest and truly want to serve the country as civil or public servants. It will also help the public service attract the best corps of professionals.

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