Ogun Wipes Out 8-Year Pension Debt, Disburses Over ₦56bn to Retirees as IGR Skyrockets

Senior citizens in Ogun State are finally seeing the “State of Harmony” they worked decades for, as the Dapo Abiodun administration announced on Tuesday that it has cleared the mountain of pension and gratuity arrears inherited from the 2012–2020 period. The Commissioner for Finance, Dapo Okubadejo, confirmed during a budget briefing that the government has successfully paid out over ₦56 billion in backlogs that had previously left thousands of retirees in financial limbo.

Speaking at the State Secretariat in Oke-Mosan, Okubadejo emphasized that the administration has not missed a single monthly pension payment since it took office in 2019. “We inherited a crisis in the Defined Benefits Scheme,” the Commissioner explained. “But through deliberate fiscal discipline and a massive boost in our state’s revenue, we have cleared the gratuities for retirees spanning eight years. This is not just a payment; it’s a restoration of dignity for those who built this state.”

The figures released by the Ministry of Finance show a staggering commitment to welfare: ₦23.3 billion was channeled to state-level retirees, while another ₦32.8 billion was cleared for local government pensioners. The state also revealed that between 2019 and mid-2025, it had pumped a total of ₦188 billion into the pension system to keep up with rising obligations.

To ensure this “pension trap” never happens again, Ogun has launched the Additional Pension Benefit (APB). This first-in-Nigeria scheme is designed to make the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) more attractive by providing a “gratuity-like” lump sum upon retirement, effectively ending the fears associated with the transition from the old pension model.

As the state’s economy balloons to a projected ₦18.96 trillion in 2026, the government is also looking ahead to the classroom. Alongside the pension news, the state confirmed plans to recruit 2,000 new full-time teachers, proving that while it honors the veterans of the past, it is aggressively investing in the generation of the future. For now, the “Gateway State” has sent a clear message: the days of retirees protesting for their sweat are officially becoming a relic of the past.