Pensioners are turned away these past days (19-21st June 2017), when they approached the treasury unit for their pension allowances. Many were told that their names failed to appear and hence needed to do verifications.
They were asked to return in September 2017.Lamin Singateh, Deputy Accountant General at the Treasury Unit when asked, said what happened is a routine exercise conducted every four years, to flush the system of Ghost pensioners. According to him it was announced in September 2016, that all pensioners on the government pension payroll should come forward physically and fill a verification form. The filled verification form will be used as evidence to ascertain that a particular pensioner is alive and should be paid.
“Those affected are probably the pensioners that do not fill the form. An opportunity is given to them to do so and probably they may get their allowances in September 2017. The exercise is effective and useful in making sure that only life pensioners are paid,” Mr. Singhateh said.
He went on to explain that the exercise for the pensioners is conducted by the treasury unit and that of active civil servants is done by the Personnel Management Office (PMO).
The PMO had also finalised an exercise with respect to the active civil servants and the outcome was positive, he added.
It is mandatory by law to retire at the age of 60 and it is the responsibility of the Government to pay an allowance in the range of 350 to 10,000 Dalasi monthly or more to pensioners, depending on the end grade and length of service, he concluded.
