OKOROCHA AND THE HUNGRY PENSIONERS
The last time I checked, a hungry man remained an
angry man. This is the reason a hungry kid would invariably be seen in a
destructive mood. Indeed, any hungry kid
would use any means to get the attention of his/her mother or anyone who takes
care of him/her.
It’s
not anymore news that two weeks ago, on Thursday 16th June 2016
precisely, the Imo State pensioners took to the streets of Owerri to protest for
the backlog of pension arrears owed them having sensed foul play from the side
of the government that’s bound to protect their welfare. The said protest was
duly planned by the leadership of the victims in question and it was conducted
as planned.
I overheard some residents lamenting that the
pensioners overstepped their boundary during the protest. According to the
ignoramuses, the protesters weren’t meant or were forbade to block the major
roads in the state in the course of the protest. They went further to state
that the leaders of the protest deserved an assault from any relevant
enforcement agent.
The so-called commentators failed to
comprehend two basic facts that necessitated the protest. One; the aggrieved
people are being owed for over one calendar year now. Secondly, they aren’t just
citizens of this state but senior citizens whom are meant to be treated with
maximum attention by any one or group whatsoever. Suffice it to say that they
undoubtedly exercised a reasonable patience before taking to the street, thus
deserve kudos.
Another rudimentary factor we are yet to
understand is that, the aforesaid persons are not just hungry but extremely angry.
I wonder how we expect a retiree who hasn’t been paid for over a year to cope. If
not that most of them have some children or wards they depend on as regards
feeding in their respective homes, I’m afraid, they would have all given up the
ghost by this time especially at this very moment we’re been faced with
astronomical economic hardship.
For the obvious fact that these people are
very hungry, we ought to equally expect them to be very angry because no doubt
‘a hungry man is an angry man’; there are no two ways about it. We should be
thanking God that they never sought the support of the workers who are still in
service prior to embarking on the much-talk-about protest. Yes, acknowledging
the fact that every worker remains a potential pensioner, he/she is required to
be aggrieved over the ongoing maltreatment received by the teeming senior
citizens, hence the NLC may decide to join them in the protest. Of course, we
are not unaware of the implication of such action.
So those who lamented that the pensioners
prevented workers from going to their various offices having blocked the major
roads ought to note that the senior citizens can as well lobby the workers to
stay off their respective offices. No doubt, they possess the muscle to carry
out such action provided nobody is injured or killed in the process. In other
words, blocking the major roads or streets should be seen as a very minor step
taking into cognizance that this set of persons is extremely angry. Try and be
in their shoes at least for a second; by so doing, you would understand a
glimpse of what they are passing through.
Most times I pity my mum who retired over
two years ago, in March 2014 precisely, but yet to receive her gratuity let
alone the pension arrears accruable to her. Though she’s blessed with children
that are equal to the task when it calls for taking good care of her, she
remains unhappy on a daily basis that she’s being deprived of her entitlements.
I’m very close to her; hence, I truly comprehend how exactly she feels
regarding the aberration. Frankly, you wouldn’t understand how it pinches one
who wears such shoes unless your feet embrace it. It’s even more amusing and
pathetic to note that my mum is an ardent fan of Governor Rochas Okorocha.
With all due respect; right now, if I see
the governor in my dream, I wouldn’t hesitate to tag it a nightmare. Of course,
you wouldn’t expect my person to see a man who makes my beloved and darling mum
cry daily as a friend. I can’t
compromise such feeling, not even in my grave. It’s more devastating to acknowledge
that the woman in question is a health personnel; needless to say that she had
vigorously helped in saving millions of lives while in service. Now, which is
the apt time for the government to appreciate her assiduous and meritorious
services, she experiences the contrary in spite of the fact that what she’s
longing for is hers.
My dad on his part is equally a pensioner;
every now and then, they would be asked to go for verification without minding
if they even have the transport fare that would convey them to the venue for
the exercise. More painfully, after the exercise, nothing would be done. For
crying out loud, pensions are the result of the continued savings made by these
individuals while in active service, thus as a civil rights activist I see no
reason they should be deprived of such right. Even the ongoing economic
meltdown or getting rid of false pensioners from the payroll shouldn’t be a
tangible excuse for such denial. Unequivocally, such deprivation anywhere in
the world isn’t unlike robbery.
At the moment, Imo State could boast of a
good number of infrastructures to an extent, still the people in it are
immensely crying foul. The state is seemingly smiling but its stomach is
virtually empty; that’s ‘suffering smiling’. There’s provision for physical infrastructure,
but none for stomach infrastructure. So who would be alive to enjoy the former?
Too many questions seeking for an answer.
As
much as I appreciate Gov Okorocha for his intention to totally get rid of the
‘ghost pensioners’ whose names are littered on the pension payroll as we were
told, I also plead with his Excellency to note that the prolonged wait is
becoming very unbearable; hence, unacceptable. Provision of a biometric
database, which is the only way to get rid of ghost workers or pensioners, as
the case may be, can only last for a short while. For the umpteenth time, we
can’t continue to rob Peter to pay Paul. Think about it!
Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor
(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Public Affairs
analyst & Civil Rights activist-
Chief Executive
Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career
Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
+2348028608056
Twitter:
@mediambassador
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