ABUJA, NIGERIA – President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday challenged future administrations not to abolish the newly activated Minimum Pension Guarantee, declaring it a permanent compact between the Nigerian state and the Nigerian worker.

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‎Tinubu, represented by Senate President Godswill Akpabio at the launch of the Presidential Pension Security Initiative in Abuja, said the guarantee had remained unimplemented for 22 years despite provisions in successive Pension Reform Acts.

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‎He said it was a statutory right, not a discretionary benefit any government could withdraw.

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‎”To every administration that comes after me, hear me clearly. This floor is now part of a compact between the Nigerian state and the Nigerian worker. Raise it, but never remove the floor,” he said.

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‎The Minimum Pension Guarantee ensures eligible retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme do not receive pensions below a prescribed minimum threshold. The government has set that floor at 52,500 naira a month, backed by a 400 billion naira Pension Protection Fund.

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‎Tinubu said Section 71 of the Pension Reform Act 2004 and Sections 82 and 84 of the 2014 Act provided for the guarantee and the fund to finance it.

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‎”Twenty-two years, four presidents have gone by, and the laws were not implemented. Not one naira paid under that guarantee. Not one retiree given a floor,” he said.

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‎”From this day, there is a floor beneath the Nigerian retiree. No one who contributed under the Contributory Pension Scheme will ever be allowed to fall below. Not because this government is generous, but because it is their right,” he added.

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‎PENCARE FOR HEALTH

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‎Tinubu also launched PenCare, a healthcare programme to give low-income retirees access to essential medical services without charge. The initiative is funded by the pension industry.

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‎He said many retirees faced financial ruin from medical emergencies, with healthcare costs quickly depleting retirement savings and leaving pensioners dependent on their families.

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‎”A pension is more than a paycheque. Ask any Nigerian who has finished their father’s pension. It was not food. It was not rent. It was a hospital bed,” he said.

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‎”One illness at 68 years can swallow 40 years of savings and leave the children to carry the burden of what remains thereafter.”

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‎He said the first PenCare health access cards would be distributed to pensioners in the coming months.

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‎OTHER PENSION INTERVENTIONS

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‎Tinubu said his administration had issued a 758 billion naira bond to settle pension arrears.

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‎He said seven out of every 10 federal pensioners whose monthly payments were below the national minimum wage had benefited, after the government approved a consequential adjustment of 32,000 naira monthly to raise their pensions to the minimum wage level or above.

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‎He also said some legacy pensioners under the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund, who previously received 18,000 naira monthly, now collect as much as 206,000 naira.

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‎”Again, we did not promise; we paid them,” he said.

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‎He said the administration had also implemented the first pension enhancement under the Contributory Pension Scheme, with additional payments already reaching beneficiaries.

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‎WARNING TO EMPLOYERS

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‎Tinubu warned employers in the public and private sectors to remit pension contributions deducted from workers’ salaries promptly.

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‎”Every naira you withheld is stolen from somebody’s old age. It is not your money. Never will be,” he warned.

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‎He urged young Nigerians to begin contributing early, saying pension security should be a priority throughout their working lives.

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‎He said economic reforms had increased resources available to state governments, citing a World Bank report that state revenues increased by about 93 percent in real terms between 2023 and 2025.

He said states had used part of the additional resources to settle more than 1 trillion naira in outstanding obligations, including pension debt.

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‎Tinubu said the ultimate objective was to ensure Nigerians who spent their productive years serving the country could retire with dignity, financial security and access to healthcare.

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‎”Nigeria kept you waiting for too long. Today, Nigeria keeps faith with you,” he said.