Retirees in Lagos State under the Nigeria Union of Pensioners have given the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu until Monday, August 31, 2026, to pay their outstanding pension enhancements, consequential adjustments, palliative allowances, wage awards and other accumulated entitlements, warning that failure to do so would trigger what they described as the “mother of all protests.”
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The pensioners issued the ultimatum during a warning protest in Lagos, where they complained that some pension-related arrears had remained unresolved for several years despite repeated appeals to the state government.
According to the union, the latest demonstration was only a warning action and could be followed by a much larger mobilisation to Alausa, the seat of the Lagos State Government, and the Lagos State House of Assembly if the affected retirees do not receive credit alerts before the deadline.
One of the union officials described the demonstration as a precursor to a larger protest, saying their entitlements had not been adequately paid.
“We have come here today to give the state government a warning protest against our coming mother of protest because our entitlements have not been adequately given to us,” he said.
The retirees said part of their demands relates to consequential pension adjustments and increases dating back several years, including arrears connected with adjustments from 2007 and the 2019 consequential allowance.
One retired director explained that the implementation of the outstanding adjustments would significantly increase the monthly pensions of affected retirees.
According to her, she was earning more than ₦400,000 monthly while in service but currently receives about ₦70,000 as pension. She said payment of the outstanding arrears and pension enhancement could raise her monthly entitlement to approximately ₦200,000.
Another retiree said she left service in 2014 and received her retirement benefits in 2017 but had since been receiving ₦75,000 monthly.
A separate former director who retired in 2019 said she was earning about ₦500,000 monthly while in service but now receives slightly above ₦80,000 as pension.
Another retired Level 17 officer said she earned ₦520,000 while in service but currently receives ₦58,782 monthly, while another pensioner disclosed that she receives ₦47,712 despite having retired about 10 years ago.
The retirees further alleged that some pensioners receive as little as ₦12,500 monthly, arguing that the amounts being paid have become grossly inadequate in the face of rising food prices, healthcare expenses, transportation costs and other necessities.
They maintained that pension payments are earned rights arising from years of service and should not be treated as acts of generosity by government.
One junior officer, who said he retired from Grade Level Four, alleged that he had not received any pension payment since 2023.
The pensioners also complained about what they described as a wide disparity between retirement benefits paid in Lagos and pensions allegedly received by comparable retirees in some other states.
One speaker claimed that while some retired Level 12 officers elsewhere receive about ₦180,000 monthly and some former Level 17 officers receive above ₦300,000, retired directors in Lagos were still receiving between about ₦60,000 and ₦70,000 monthly.
Beyond the pension demands, the protesting retirees expressed anger over what they alleged was the government’s willingness to devote substantial resources to political activities outside Lagos while pensioners who had served the state for decades remained unpaid.
One pensioner alleged that an official travelled from Lagos to Osun State with more than ₦1 billion to support a preferred candidate during the recent election campaign, questioning why comparable urgency could not be applied to settling pension arrears.
“If someone could travel from Lagos State, I repeat, from Lagos State to Osun State, with over a billion, to support the campaign in Osun State for their candidate, ah-ah! And they now don’t deem it fit to pay us our outstanding arrears as pensioners,” he said.
Other protesters similarly alleged that millions of naira were spent on political mobilisation in Osun while Lagos pensioners continued to wait for their entitlements.
The claims concerning the alleged political expenditure were made by the protesters and were not independently established in the material available.
The pensioners also warned political office holders not to mistake their peaceful disposition or advanced age for political weakness, declaring that they retained the power to punish leaders at the ballot box.
“We don’t have guns. We don’t have any weapon. But we have our voters’ cards,” they declared, warning that their Permanent Voter Cards could become an instrument for holding political leaders accountable if their welfare continued to be ignored.
Federal representative of the pensioners, Comrade Busari Isiaka, similarly stressed that the peaceful conduct of senior citizens should not be interpreted as weakness.
The union said what it expected from the Sanwo-Olu administration before the August 31 deadline was not another promise, announcement or assurance but actual payment into retirees’ bank accounts.
They warned that unless the payments are made, pensioners would mobilise in large numbers and could remain at strategic government offices until their demands are addressed.
“Prepare your mat and pillow if they fail to listen to this warning protest. This is just a warning protest,” one speaker told the retirees.
The pensioners said some files had reportedly been processed or cleared by the Lagos State Pension Commission but that payments had still not reached some of the affected beneficiaries, leaving elderly retirees struggling under the prevailing economic hardship.
They consequently demanded immediate implementation of all outstanding pension increases and payment of arrears, palliative allowances, wage awards and other retirement benefits.
As of the material available for this report, neither Governor Sanwo-Olu nor the Lagos State Government had responded to the pensioners’ latest August 31 ultimatum or their allegations concerning political expenditure in Osun State.
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