BY HENRY UMORU

ABUJA –  FOLLOWING its alleged refusal to pay pensioners of Nigerian Postal Service, NIPOST, and other agencies of government, the Senate yesterday issued warrant of arrests on the Managing Director of Industrial and General Insurance Company (IGI) and the entire management over alleged pension fraud.

Chairman, Senate Panel probing the Pension scam, Senator Aloysius Etok, who signed the warrant of arrest, asked the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Mohammed Abubakar, to bring them in handcuffs next Tuesday.

According to Etok, ‘’the Senate hereby issue warrant of arrest on the Managing Director and the entire management of  IGI to appear before us on Tuesday at 3pm.

‘’The Inspector-General himself must bring them in handcuff because they have caused a lot of problem to the people”.
IGI has been the underwriter insurance company dealing with many government agencies but has allegedly failed to pay these agencies.

The Senate move followed the non-payment of pension to NIPOST retirees between 14 and 70 months, just as the representative of the retirees, Prince Adeniyi Adeleke, told the committee that no fewer than 100 retirees have died while waiting for their pension.

According to him, N4.6 billion was appropriated for the payment of pension arrears to NIPOST retirees in 2009 budget, but the office of Accountant-General failed to release the money.

He said: ‘’The pensioners are dying, we are dying! The money is not being released. Any system that does not bring out money appropriated should be discarded.”

He told the committee that if there was no commitment on when the money would be paid, “my life will be in danger because my members will think I have compromised,” adding, “payment to underwriters should be stopped.”