By Victor Ahiuma-Young & Rosemary Onuoha

THE National Pension Commission, PenCom, weekend, said pension funds had reached N5.3 trillion.

DG, National Pension Commission, Mrs Chinelo Anohu-Amazu

Speaking to newsmen in Lagos, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, Director General, PenCom, attributed the growth in the funds to the security fence built to protect it from being diverted into personal use by managers of the funds.

The DG, however, dismissed insinuation that the funds were lying idle, noting that the funds were invested in Federal Government bonds, among other lucrative investment windows, which could be redeemed upon retirement of the beneficiaries.

She affirmed that the Commission had never and will never prevent investing of pension assets into infrastructure development and other sectors, but that such investments must abide by the investment guidelines in the Pension Reform Act, 2014.

Anohu-Amazu said: “Nobody denies anybody from accessing pension funds for investment, but the guideline must be strictly followed, and majority of those complaining of such denial have not complied with investment guidelines.”

Noting that the pension assets were a contribution of workers who have decided to save parts of their salaries as pension in a bid to enjoy these savings after retirement, the PenCom DG said such persons should not be denied their pension benefits when they demand for it, hence, the need to protect the growing assets.