Unpaid Entitlements: Military Retirees Disrupt Activities At Finance Ministry, Abuja
- Block headquarters complex’s main entrance
- Say no backing down until demands are met
BY OUR CORRESPONDENT – If the threat issued by retired military personnel is anything to go by, then staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja should be prepared for some torrid times ahead this December.
The snapshot of this threat may have been displayed on Thursday, December 5, 2025 which entered the record books as a rough day for staff of the Ministry when scores of retired military men invaded its headquarters located in the Central Business District (CBD) to protest over non-payment of their entitlements by the government.
Gathering as early as 7:30 am, the protesting retirees blocked the main entrance into the Ministry with their sleeping mats, chairs and canopies, accusing the federal government of refusing to pay them about 20 percent to 28 percent salary increment from January to November 2024.
Leader of the protesting retirees, Innocent Azubuike, a retired Colonel told journalists at an emergency news briefing that the non-payment of their entitlements is causing untold hardship for them and their families amid the current economic hardship in the country.
Explaining the reason behind their protesting at the Finance Ministry instead of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), Azubuike said their findings showed it was the administrative bottlenecks at the Finance Ministry that have delayed matters after officials at MoD had concluded their part and given all necessary approvals.
He said information available further indicated that the needed cash-backing for those approvals from the Finance Ministry is what has continued to delay the payment, thereby extending their misery.
According to him, the retirees would not be backing down on their protest or vacate the Ministry’s premises until their demands for payment are met by the government.
Colonel Azubuike (rtd) listed their demands as the outstanding payments for palliatives from October 2023 to November 2024 and the payment of an additional N32,000 to their pensions.
Others include bulk payment of the Security Debarment Allowance (SDA), as well as a refund of deductions made from the pensions of medically boarded soldiers, among others.
Disclosing that they patiently waited for about 11 months to have the government settle their entitlements before deciding to embark on public protest after all efforts at peaceful resolution of the matter clearly came to naught.
He said it is regrettable that assurances from official quarters that their entitlements would be settled before November ending failed to materialise as they were told that there was no cash to back up the payments.
Frowning at what he described as “ill-treatment and complete neglect” by the government despite their sacrificial service to the country, the retired Senior officer said; “We were told to exercise patience and assured that our long-unpaid entitlements would be settled in November.
“November is now gone, and there is no indication of when this will happen because it is a matter with the FMoF and not the Ministry of Defence.”
Recalled that this latest protest comes less than 12 hours after another group of retired military personnel, under the aegis of Ex-Service Men and Family Welfare Association of Nigeria, also held a public rally demanding payment of pension arrears by the government.
