Court Of Appeal Voids Severance Allowance, Pension To Political Office Holders
BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUJA – The Court of Appeal has ruled against the payment of severance allowance, pension and or gratuity to all categories of political office holders and political appointees, describing the practice as morally wrong.
The Appellate Court specifically ruled that it is not morally right to pay an elected public officer or political appointee pension, gratuity and or severance allowances for holding an office for three to eight years as the case may be, saying that it cannot be justified in the context of present social realities as it clearly amounts to gross social injustice.
The Court further ruled that it is unjustifiable in the face of the nation’s socio-economic reality for few politicians, who hold office for not more than eight-years, to allocate to themselves huge public funds in the name of pension and severance packages while civil servants, that committed most of their active years in the service of the nation are denied their retirement benefits.
The three man panel of the Court of Appeal, Abuja which gave these rulings in an appeal marked: CA/A/810/2017 filed by the Governor of Kogi State and three others which lead judgment was delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, also described as wicked and morally wrong for political office holders and their appointees, who helped themselves to public funds while in office, to still go ahead to claim entitlement to pension and severance allowances.
The judgment as read by Justice Agim states; “I must state here that the claimants’ claim for payment of severance allowance, because the tenure of their appointment has come to an end, is as unfounded as is morally wrong.
“As I have held that their letters of appointment did not stipulate their entitlement to such payment. They did not produce any law or any document or instrument that entitles them to such payment.
“The fact that elected pubic office holders and political appointees are paid huge amounts of money as monthly salaries and other forms of allowances, while in office, is common knowledge in Nigeria and is not reasonable to open question.
“It is also common knowledge that many of them after an office tenure of between three to eight years become stupendously wealthy, exhibiting mind-blowing opulence and splendor. Yet these office holders insist on being paid severance allowance for holding such offices.
“Meanwhile, career civil servants, who have served this country or their states or Local Governments, all their life, can hardly collect their pensions and gratuity when retired. They are now being subjected to contributory pension schemes in which they contribute part of their monthly meagre salaries that are always paid in arrears while in service, to be able to earn pension and gratuity upon retirement.
“The political appointees and elected public office holders, who do not work as long and as hard as the career civil servants quickly get paid huge severance allowances upon leaving office in addition to the huge wealth they acquired while holding such offices and without having been subjected to any contributory pension schemes,” the Court of Appeal declared.
