The Kwara State Government has revealed that pensioners in the state are yet to benefit from the newly approved minimum wage of N70,000 due to the discovery of widespread payroll fraud in their monthly payment system.
In a statement on Sunday, the government explained that delays in payment were also linked to the failure of many pensioners to enrol in the Kwara State Resident Registration Agency database.
According to the statement issued on behalf of the Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Hauwa Nuru, by the Press Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Babatunde Abdulrasheed, the state government has approved a N10,000 monthly pension increase, effective 1 May 2025.
The statement was titled ‘Government uncovers, reports payroll fraud to security agencies. Kwarans want a cleaner payroll for the pensioners in the state’.
It disclosed that a cartel was behind the payroll manipulation, prompting the government to report the matter to the police for further investigation and possible prosecution.
‘The government has discovered some disturbing evidence of payroll fraud perpetrated by a cartel. This has been reported to the police for further investigation and prosecution of the suspects.
‘This cartel is deploying every trick to frustrate the KWSRRA process and the verification of authentic workers and pensioners. We are getting them’, the statement said.
Nuru also disclosed that 73.2% of pensioners in the state have yet to register with the KWSRRA, despite the government’s year-long advocacy.
‘We have been on this campaign for nearly one year. Kwara State started almost a year ago. The government has given enough windows for all workers and pensioners to enrol.
‘Now, we are left with no option than to pay only those whose details we can verify in line with our commitment to further clean the payroll and free up resources’, the statement added.
It was recalled that several pensioners have not received their March and April 2025 stipends, further fueling concerns over the delay.
The government confirmed it has approved a new minimum pension structure, effective from May 2025, as part of an agreement with labour unions.
The government, meanwhile, has approved the upward review of monthly pension by N10,000 across the board for all pensioners in the state.
The date for the implementation of this agreement for pension review in the Kwara State Public Service shall be effective from 1st May 2025, according to an agreement that the government signed with the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council at the instance of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners on Friday, May 23rd, 2025′, the statement further read.
It will be recalled that the state government had earlier approved the new minimum wage of N70,000 for all categories of workers, with implementation beginning in October 2024.
