FG PAYS \u20a618 BILLION SEVERANCE TO 2,700 EX-NIGERIA AIRWAYS WORKERS AFTER 20-YEAR WAIT<\/p>\n
The Federal Government has concluded payment of outstanding severance benefits to 2,100 former workers of Nigeria Airways Limited, more than two decades after the national carrier was liquidated.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Thursday, the Federal Ministry of Finance said the payment covers Batches 1 to 7 of beneficiaries. Batches 8 and 9, comprising 600 beneficiaries, are being finalised and are scheduled to receive their payments in a matter of days. With this, a total of 2,700 former Nigeria Airways workers are covered, with \u20a618 billion in benefits approved across the nine batches.<\/p>\n
For the beneficiaries and their families, the development brings long awaited relief after years of waiting for an entitlement that, for many, had remained uncertain.<\/p>\n
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had earlier approved the settlement of the outstanding severance obligations to former Nigeria Airways workers, directing that the long standing matter be brought to a conclusion. The President\u2019s intervention provided the necessary impetus for the Federal Government to move towards resolving the outstanding obligation and bringing relief to the affected former workers.<\/p>\n
Under the direction of the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, the relevant processes for identifying eligible beneficiaries, validating records and establishing the financial obligations were pursued, resulting in the commencement of payment to the first seven batches and the readiness of Batches 8 and 9 for immediate payment.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the development, Oyedele said the payment reflects the Federal Government\u2019s determination to address legitimate outstanding obligations and ensure that the welfare of average Nigerians is prioritised. \u201cBehind these figures are people and families who have waited for years to receive what is legitimately due to them. Our responsibility is to confront outstanding obligations, complete the necessary processes and, once the resources are secured, ensure that the people affected feel the impact of government positively,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Minister disclosed that the exercise demonstrates what can be achieved when government institutions work together to resolve longstanding issues, adding that the objective is to ensure that legitimate beneficiaries receive their approved entitlements while maintaining the necessary safeguards around public funds.<\/p>\n
The Federal Ministry of Finance appreciates the important collaboration of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, whose engagement with the Finance Ministry helped sustain the matter and advance efforts towards its resolution.<\/p>\n
The statement also noted that the National Assembly Joint Committees on Aviation also played an important role through their oversight and engagement on the outstanding benefits. The Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, and Chairman, House Committee on Aviation, Hon. Abdullahi Garba, were actively engaged in advancing the case of former Nigeria Airways workers and supporting efforts towards settlement.<\/p>\n
The payment process has involved extensive verification of beneficiary records, including biometric capture and validation of personal and banking information, to ensure that funds are paid to the rightful beneficiaries.<\/p>\n
According to the Director in charge of the Presidential Initiative and Continuous Audit (PICA) Department, Mr. Seldam Dangin, the Ministry is preparing a second phase, a mop up exercise, to capture beneficiaries whose records could not be processed during the first phase.<\/p>\n
He added that the exercise will focus on updating inaccurate or outdated information, additional biometric verification where necessary and correction of banking details. It will also address cases involving deceased beneficiaries, with next of kin or estates required to complete the necessary verification and legal processes before payment.<\/p>\n
The mop up exercise is expected to commence by the end of September or early October, subject to final arrangements.<\/p>\n
The commencement of payment to the first seven batches, alongside the readiness of Batches 8 and 9, marks a major step towards resolving the longstanding severance obligation to former Nigeria Airways workers, while the planned mop up will provide an opportunity to resolve outstanding cases and bring more eligible beneficiaries into the payment process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FG PAYS \u20a618 BILLION SEVERANCE TO 2,700 EX-NIGERIA AIRWAYS WORKERS AFTER 20-YEAR WAIT The Federal Government has concluded payment of outstanding severance benefits to 2,100 former workers of Nigeria Airways Limited, more than two decades after the national carrier was liquidated. In a statement on Thursday, the Federal Ministry of Finance said the payment covers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":152253,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[3452,3451,267],"class_list":["post-152248","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-others","tag-nigeria-airways-limited","tag-outstanding-severance-benefits","tag-president-tinubu"],"yoast_head":"\n