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The Imo State panel on payment of pensions of all retirees chaired by Evans Uzokwe, a former Head of Service, submitted its report to Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Uche Onyeagucha.
It decried the difficulty its members passed through to obtain a record of past pensions payment to the state’s retirees just as it submitted that only biometric data capturing and verification would resolve the issues.
Sequel to this, the retirees’ verification exercise began yesterday across the 27 council areas, except in Owerri Municipal where it commenced at Government College, Owerri and at the Civic Centre, Oguta for Oguta Council Area.
“We found it unbelievable that after an intensive search, we could not lay hands on any list or record with which the last administration paid pensions. Therefore, only data capturing as embarked upon by the government will solve the problem,” he stated.
Receiving the report, Onyeagucha commended the committee for promptly delivering on its terms of reference, assuring that the state government would use the facts so far uncovered to redress the situation.