By Joy Odor-ABUJA
A group of retired pioneer staff of the defunct New Nigerian Newspapers (NNN) Limited have called on the New Nigeria Development Company (NNDC) to immediately release their outstanding entitlements, in line with the directive of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF).
The retirees, led by veterans John Fwah and Tajudeen Ajibade, expressed their appreciation to the NSGF for instructing the NNDC to pay workers their dues from the proceeds of NNN property sales.
However, they lamented that the current payment structure excludes long-serving staff who worked with the organisation in the 1970s and early 1980s.
According to them, only staff who retired after 2006 or were directly linked with the Northern Governors’ services in NNN are being considered, an approach the retirees described as “unacceptable, unjust, and discriminatory.”
“We were the pioneer staff who built the foundation of the newspaper when it was under the Interim Common Services Agency (ICSA) and later taken over, albeit unofficially, by the Federal Government. Excluding us from the payment is a grave injustice,” they said.
They recalled how NNN served as the premier voice of the North and was among the most sought-after newspapers before the digital era. The newspaper played a crucial role in uniting the northern region and fostering national discourse, they said.
The Veterans pointed out that during the 2017 verification exercise conducted by the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) in Kaduna, all categories of retirees from NNN, including those under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) were verified and have since been receiving pensions without discrimination.
“If PTAD recognizes us as legitimate retirees, why is NNDC choosing to draw a discriminatory line?” they questioned.
They also raised concerns about the management of the legal process that resulted in the release of the funds.
While they acknowledged that the legal battle was fronted by fellow retirees, they said the N50 million paid as legal fees, and the N20 million given to the legal representatives as additional compensation, were done without wider consultation.
“Our signatures were used to file the legal case, yet we were left out of both the decision-making and the payment,” they said.
The Group named several founding staff, including journalists and administrators, who contributed to the paper’s legacy during its analog and early digital transition.
They stressed that many of their colleagues have died in hardship due to delayed entitlements, a situation they said must not be allowed to continue.
In a strong appeal to the NNDC, the Veterans stated:
“We are not begging for favours. We are demanding our rights. We worked for the northern governors. We helped establish NNN’s properties across Nigeria and should be paid from the proceeds of their sale like others.”
They concluded by urging the NNDC to resolve the issue amicably and uphold justice, warning that any attempt to exclude them could erode public trust in the entire process.
“Let it be known that the Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent are alive and see all. We ask for fairness, not charity,” the statement concluded.
