The Adamawa state Pension Board has successfully commenced the verification exercise of pensioners retired from the state civil service for onward payments of their gratuities.
The Executive Chairman of the Board, Mr Thomas T Madi, made this known during an interview with newsmen in Yola.
According to him, about 500 pensioners were being screened for the exercise, aimed at authenticating their worthiness before payments.
The Chairman expressed gratitude to Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri for graciously releasing the sum of 1.3 billion Naira for onward payments to pensioners retired in the state civil service from January 2013 to May 2013 respectively.
He further commended the efforts of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri for the monthly payment of gratuities to deserving pensioners, despite the backlog of about 20 billion Naira pension arrears owned by the state pensioners.
A permanent member in the state pension board Mohammed Ibrahim Attah, commended the efforts of the Governor for this gesture to the state pensioners.
He also urged them to give all their support towards the sustenance of the government beyond 2023.
One of the pensioners, Polycab Edward Mapeo, expressed delight on the overall conduct of the exercise, where he described it as orderly.
The entire pensioners have been urged to exercise more patience, as their outstanding backlog of gratuities will soon be settled on the availability of the funds.
Aliyu Ladan