Retired military officers write Buhari

Retired military officers in Nigeria under the auspices of the Retired Military Professionals Nigeria (RMPN) have appealed to the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government to improve the welfare package of senior citizens and veteran soldiers in the country.

The ex-military personnel tabled their demand via a letter signed by its Coordinator, Rtd Warrant Officer IP Ogwoni. Dated July 19, 2021 but sighted by News Express on Thursday, August 26, was coped to the Minister of Defence, Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff, Chief of the Air Staff, Chairman, Military Pensions Board and Garba Shehu, the Presidential Spokesperson.

The letter, which was titled, “Ameliorating the Mitigating Factors In Presidential Welfare Disposition Towards Veterans”, briefed the President on the current welfare needs that agencies of government are denying veterans soldiers through instrumentality of bureaucratic tricks.

The ex-military personnel explained that unnecessary controversies have surrounded the issues of the long awaited security debarment allowances payable to all retired members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN), adding that the controversies emanated from tampering with relevant military manual(s), denial of the Commander-in-Chief of contextual information.

“These controversies are: how many times should the SDA be paid? who pays the SDA; and from which funds is the SDA to be paid.”

The ex-military personnel while commending the President for his flexibility listed other issues that should be resolved to include: Retirement Savings Account (RSA) Balances owed concerned veterans exempted from contributory pension scheme, placement of verified civil war veterans on military pensions payroll, restoration of deductions from the allowances of medically boarded officers and soldiers, lingering non-payment of two years arrears accruing from consequential adjustment of military pensions due to minimum wages increment to civilians.

The letter read in part: “Since after the salary increments by late President Yar’Adua in 2010, a long war and lamentations by veterans set out. As at May, 2021 when this note is being made, balances of Retirement Savings Accounts of veterans retired earlier than 2011 when the National Assembly (NASS) exempted the military and security agencies from contributory pension scheme, remain illegally unpaid to those concerned.

“President Buhari approved harmonization and increment of military pensions which had been left as low as the pre-2010 years. Arrears of backlog accrued pensions were therefore paid.

“It is the conviction of veterans that if other pressing issues pertaining to welfare and rights of military retirees are presented to President Buhari, he would grant speedy approval. Unfortunately, information gap between the current pressing needs of veterans has made it difficult for the President to attend to our needs. The information gaps are caused by unfavorable disposition of the Ministry of Defence, the Military Pensions Board and other stakeholders within government bureaucracy.

“Since he became the civilian Commander-in-Chief under a democratic dispensation, President Buhari demonstrated practical determination to care for veterans. There is no single known occasion where the welfare needs of veterans were presented to President Buhari which he refused or delayed approval. His preparedness to cater for veterans has angered those at the Ministry of Defence which has created information gaps through bureaucratic tricks.

“Unnecessary controversies have surrounded the issues of the long awaited security debarment allowances payable to all retired members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN). The controversies emanated from tampering with relevant military manual(s), denial of the Commander-in-Chief of contextual information.

“These controversies are: how many times should the SDA be paid? who pays the SDA; and  from which funds is the SDA to be paid.

“Origin and Idea of SDA is as old as the Nigerian Army: It is easy to recall that the idea of SDA has been encapsulated in past promises made to troops who went to Burma and Congo in years even before Nigeria’s political independence. Why those soldiers did not agitate for such benefits was because they joined the nationalists in the struggle for independence with the firm belief and hope that when governance devolved on Nigerians, veterans would be taken care of.

“But political instability led to the military coup. After the coup and throughout the civil war and post-civil war, troops and veterans kept hoping that their welfare would be looked into. But   throughout the military regimes, things became worse for the military’ institution, up till President Buhari came in 2015. With President Buhari in the saddle, a new dawn has arrived. 

“Transformation agenda of MAFA 2012: In the forward to MAFA 2012, it was written “In line with transformation agenda of the Nigerian Armed forces, the need for harmony and synergy of efforts is a basic requirement for success especially in joint operations. The manual is thus an amalgam of the individual financial manuals of the three Services with an overriding commitment to prudent and transparent financial management desired for enhanced joint operational efficiency.

“The politicians at the office of the current Minister of Defence hid the report of the Committee set up by the Minister to review the uproar among the veterans who were planning nationwide rallies to let the President became aware of their grievances relating to non-payment of SDA to the “pre-November 9, 2019 retirees.

“And since the Report of the nine-man Committee was under lock at MOD, instead, the Committee Chairman (Rear Admr of O. F. Ofodile) wrote an executive summary on the shielded deliberation of the Committee. In Admiral Ofodile’s Executive Summary, he noted: ‘The Committee used data from the military Pensions Board (MPB) to determine the number of veterans outside the 9 November 17 effective date. The MPB provide data of 83,696 active pre-November 9, 2017 pensioners who are currently on the Board’s payroll. The data further showed that there were 69,025 pre-9 November retirees on the inactive list, out of which 13,552 are alive while 55,473 are presumed dead. Therefore, the total number of pre-9 November 2017 retirees considered is 97,248 (ie 83,696 + 13,552)’.

“Consequently, it was suggested that any percentage of the current Annual Total Emolument (ATE) other than 10 percent could be used for the 97,248 would be beneficiaries. According to the data from DHQ  records on the payment of SDA to retirees at 10 percent of current ATE, the FGN would require about N367 Billion, should same condition be applied to the 97,248 pre-9 November 2017 veterans. On the other hand, using 10 percent of their ATE at their respective times of retirement, about N135 Billion would be needed. Whichever choice that is made out of the two would weigh heavily on the economy.”

h. The MOD and SDA Committee have created a wrong impression that ‘The FGN would require about N389 Billion, should the same condition be applied to the 97,248 pre-9 November 2017 veterans. On the other hand, using 10 percent of their ATE at their respective times of retirement, about N135 Billion would be needed.’

“Thus the SDA Committee shifted the burden from the Service Chiefs directly to the FGN!

i. Question as to whether MAFA 2017 Repeals Provisions of MAFA 2012

Since MAFA 2017 is a product of MAFA 2012, it does not mean that the content of MAFA 2012 concerning those entitled to SDA has changed. But so far, the language, of the MOD is that all pre-9 November 2017 stand exempted from benefiting from the SDA. This stand is unfair, inhuman, unethical, unlawful, restrictive, illegal, unwholesome. Now we take judicial note of the opinion of MOD through the Admiral Offodile’s executive summary that,

‘According to the data from DHO records on the payment of SDA to retirees at 10 percent of current ATE the FGN would require about N367 Billion should same condition be applied to the 92,248 pre-9 November 2017 veterans. On the other hand, using 10 percent of their ATE at their respective times of retirement, about N135 Billion would be needed, whichever choice that is made out of the two would weigh heavily in the economy’.”

The ex-military officers also demanded that the President permit the Chairman Military Pension Board to blend to 10 years pensionable duration for all verified civil war veterans and place all of them on military pension payroll, direct the Pension Commission to refund balances of Retirement Savings Account (RSA) to already retired veterans who were exempted from contributory pensions scheme by the National Assembly in 2011, direct the Chairman Military Pensions Board to restore the allowances of medically boarded officers and soldiers who had been on pensions for more than 20 years, direct  the Minister of Defence, Rtd Maj-Gen Salihu Magashi and the Chief of Defence Staff, Lt-Gen. Lucky Irabor, to revert to the stipulation of MAFA 2012 and allow the Service Chiefs of the AFN to fulfil the obligation to pay their respective retired officers and soldiers the Security Debarment Allowances.

The group also appealed that the President to direct MPB to pay veterans the lingering 24-month arrears of consequential adjustment of minimum wage.