Pensioners in Lagos State have taken to the streets to demand payment of what they describe as years of outstanding pension entitlements, with some alleging that portions of the arrears date back to 2007.
The protest was organized by the Lagos State chapter of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners as the retirees called on Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to intervene and settle the outstanding payments.
The pensioners described the action as a warning protest, saying they would organize a larger demonstration if their concerns were not addressed.
The union’s State Secretary, Olukayode Bada, said retirees were protesting because they believed their entitlements had not been fully paid.
“We are here today to give the state government a warning protest against our coming mother-of-all protest because our entitlements have not been adequately given to us,” he said.
The union’s Financial Secretary, Olufunke Ogunrinde, said some of the outstanding payments originated from the period when the affected pensioners were still working in the state civil service.
She said settling the arrears would improve the monthly income of affected retirees.
For some pensioners, the issue goes beyond delayed payments and highlights the sharp decline in their income after retirement.
Bolajoko Akinlagun, a former director and principal in the Lagos State public service, said she retired on a salary of about N120,000 but now receives just over N58,000 monthly.
She said she had repeatedly petitioned the Lagos State House of Assembly over the matter.
The Federal Representative of the National Union of Pensioners Contributory Pension Scheme, Busari Isiaka, warned that the retirees could take their protest beyond Lagos if the government failed to respond.
He appealed to the governor to meet with the pensioners and address their complaints.
The pensioners also reminded political leaders that retirees remain voters and have a role to play in elections.
The Lagos State Government, however, rejected the claim that pensioners are owed a 16-year backlog, saying it has consistently released funds to meet pension obligations under both the Contributory Pension Scheme and Defined Benefits Scheme.
Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, said the Sanwo-Olu administration had made pension payments a priority and had released billions of naira to retirees.
According to him, the Lagos State Pension Commission has paid N168.2bn to more than 48,000 retirees from 2007 to date.
He said the government had also paid about N92bn in accrued rights to more than 25,000 retirees since May 2019.
The accrued rights cover both gratuity and pension components owed to retiring public servants.
Omotoso said the state also increased pension contribution rates in 2020 to 10 per cent for employers and eight per cent for employees, describing the move as part of efforts to strengthen the pension system.
He added that the government had provided additional funds to tackle outstanding obligations, including a N5bn payment to 1,963 retirees in July 2024.
The commissioner described that payment as a major intervention that cleared the outstanding CPS obligations at the time.
The government also introduced faster gratuity payments for pensioners facing serious health challenges, while pension payments under the contributory scheme continue to be transferred directly into retirees’ Retirement Savings Accounts.
Beyond pension payments, the state said it had continued to provide welfare support to retirees through twice-yearly programmes aimed at helping them cope with rising living costs.
For pensioners under the Defined Benefits Scheme, Omotoso said the state extended the N25,000 wage award given to serving workers to more than 10,000 retirees between December 2023 and February 2024.
This was followed by pension increases of 20 per cent and 28 per cent in March 2025, according to the government.
In May 2026, Lagos also matched the Federal Government’s N32,000 pension increase for DBS retirees.
The government said the series of adjustments had pushed the pension wage bill up by more than 100 per cent.
Omotoso further disclosed that LASPEC had paid more than N4bn to 1,862 retirees so far in 2026 and was preparing another N1bn payment for about 700 retirees.
The contrasting positions highlight the continuing disagreement between Lagos pensioners and the state government over the scale and status of outstanding pension obligations.
While the retirees insist that long-standing arrears remain unpaid, the government maintains that it has made substantial payments and introduced several measures to improve retirees’ welfare.
The pensioners are now seeking further engagement with the state authorities, while threatening to escalate their protest if their demands are not resolved.
