By Suzan Edeh

Bauchi — Commercial activities yesterday came to a standstill in Bauchi as over 100 pensioners of NIPOST took to the streets to embark on what they termed “a peaceful demonstration” over non-payment of their pension for the last 4 years.

They called on the management of the organisation to do something to save them from further sufferings, stressing that as at today, 179 pensioners and members of their families have so far died waiting for their entitlements.

The former staff of NIPOST who carried placards with different inscriptions also locked the two gates of the Bauchi General Post Office as well as the Post Office located at Gidan Mai within the premises of NITEL while all shops attached to the places were forced to close for business.

Leader of the pensioners, Mukaila Adeyemi, told newsmen: “As you can see us here, we are demonstrating the non-payment of our pension by the NIPOST management in the last four years after we retired from service. We were paid our gratuity in December 2006 and since then we have not been paid any amount and we are suffering for this.”

He said some of them were even short-changed during the payment of the gratuity and lamented that up till the time of the protest, the anomalies had not been corrected and the affected staff were made to suffer poverty after serving the country faithfully for years before retiring.