Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to supporting the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) in improving the welfare and wellbeing of retirees.
Sanwo-Olu said his government holds pensioners in high esteem and would continue to treat them with dignity, fairness and equity, noting that retirees deserve respect and appreciation for their years of service.
The governor spoke during a courtesy visit by the senior management team of PTAD, led by its Executive Secretary, Tolulope Odunaiya, at Lagos House, Marina. Commending reforms initiated by Bola Ahmed Tinubu to enhance the welfare of pensioners nationwide, Sanwo-Olu said Lagos State had also implemented significant reforms to reflect present-day realities.
“We in Lagos State understand and appreciate the life and the time of our pensioners. We know that they have used very active parts of their lives serving the government at one point or the other,” he said.
Highlighting the state’s record under the Contributory Pension Scheme, the governor declared that Lagos currently has no pension arrears.
“On the contributory pension, we are the only state today that doesn’t have any pension arrears. In the last three years, we have cleared everything that is a liability on our pension. There is no pensioner that would say we owe three years’ money,” he stated.
He added that retirees with complete documentation begin to receive their benefits within two to three months after exit from service.
“What happens now is that if your documents are complete and you exit, within the first two and three months maximum, you should begin to enjoy everything that you have laboured for, and that is what we are seeing and confirming to you,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu stressed that the least government could do for those who had served the country was to give them “a respectful space and a listening ear” in their later years.
The governor also commended Odunaiya and the PTAD management team for their dedication to national service.
Earlier, Odunaiya said PTAD was keen on strengthening its working relationship with the Lagos State Government, noting that many of the nearly 200,000 pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) administered by the directorate reside in Lagos.
“They are men and women who served Nigeria faithfully and are now in their retirement years. What they seek is simple: fairness, dignity, and access to the benefits they deserve,” she said.
Describing Lagos as Nigeria’s economic powerhouse and Centre of Excellence, Odunaiya praised the strides of the Sanwo-Olu administration and expressed confidence in the governor’s leadership.
She disclosed that PTAD was set to implement two landmark reforms under the Defined Benefit Pension Scheme following presidential approval granted in August 2025.
The first reform, the Pension Harmonisation Policy, aims to correct disparities in pensions arising from outdated salary structures, while the second reform provides access to healthcare through the National Health Insurance Scheme administered by the National Health Insurance Authority.
According to her, the reforms are designed to strengthen social protection and uphold the dignity of senior citizens, in alignment with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu.
She added that PTAD had undertaken the rehabilitation and renovation of the Lagos State Liaison Office to enhance service delivery to DBS pensioners in the state.
The visit, she said, underscored the importance of collaboration between federal and state institutions in ensuring improved welfare for retirees.
