Aggrieved workers of the National Pension Commission (PenCom) have asked President Muhammadu Buhari to reverse the sack of the Commission’s Director-General, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu.
This is even as the staffs of the commission threatened to shut down the agency if she was not reinstated “immediately.”
They staffs alleged that the federal government did not follow due process in relieving her of her appointment, saying: “Before the incumbent head of PenCom is relieved of his/her appointment, he/she ought to have been written.”
They lamented that the new appointment “runs contrary to the spirit and letters of Part 5, section 21(1) and (2) of the Pension Reform Act, 2014, and, therefore, it is null and void.”
“Ordinarily and statutorily, the former DG ought to have been written formally by the authorities, but sadly in her own case the reverse is the case.”
They further alleged that she was being crucified “because she is a woman and from the South-east geopolitical zone.”
“How can a DG that has so much passion for the pension industry and has concluded plans to bring-in the informal sector to be part of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) be removed just like that without looking at her achievements? She should be given a pat on the back instead of removal,” they questioned.
According to them, “Mrs Anohu-Amazu’s ouster is politically-motivated despite the fact that she has turned around the fortunes of the hitherto moribund pension industry which, before her appointment, was growing at a very low rate compared to the immense innovations and international best practices inherent in the pension industry today.”
“The pension asset since the enactment of the Act 2004 to 2014 stood at 2.5 trillion in 10 years and the DG within her 3 years short stay has been able to raise the pension assets to 6.5 trillion. A reflection of the indices shows that she has been able to achieve more prior to her appointment as the DG of the commission.
“How can such a proactive and dynamic young manager of people be removed,” they queried.
“Industry operators are worried that her sudden removal will destroy the sector and jeopardise the confidence of pensioners in the system and stifle investors’ confidence in the industry.”
They regretted that “At a time, our country is witnessing economic recession, the pension industry has given our financial system a boost by ensuring that pensioners collect their entitlements as at when due; it has also rekindled the hopes and aspirations of workers, investors and shareholders, in addition to growing the economy for the much-needed relief.”
