Retired soldiers protest at finance ministry in Abuja over unpaid entitlements
Some retired military personnel on Monday barricaded the main entrance of the federal ministry of finance in Abuja in protest over the non-payment of their statutory entitlements.
The peaceful protest was staged by both male and female retired military personnel, some of whom appeared camouflage and demanding the immediate payment of outstanding gratuity balances, security debarment allowance (SDA), and parking allowances allegedly withheld since their disengagement from the Nigerian armed forces.
Although reports noted that an intervention effort was made by a senior military officer to calm the demonstrators, the ex-servicemen and women refused to vacate the gate, insisting that no dialogue would begin until concrete steps were taken to address their demands.
Umar Faruq, one of the protest leaders and a retired corporal, who also identified as an engineer, accused the military pensions board of “deliberate neglect”.
He said the Board informed them that they were not entitled to benefit from the new national minimum wage adjustments because they were discharged on July 1, 2024.
“This is unacceptable. We gave our best years to the nation. Many of us are suffering while the system continues to deny us what is rightfully ours,” he said.
Another protester, Mohamed Kabiru, a retired sergeant, expressed frustration with the refusal of the federal government to pay certain allowances.
“They didn’t pay us our full money. They promised parking allowance; they didn’t pay it. We gave our lives for this country, yet we are treated like we don’t matter,” Kabiru said.
He questioned the value system of the country, comparing their plight to the generous rewards given to footballers.
“I carry iron in my body from injuries sustained while in service. But they pay millions to athletes for 90 minutes of play and ignore us who risked everything,” he added.
Lawrence Yusuf, a retired warrant officer who served in the military for 31 years, said he received only N6.8 million as his gratuity, a sum he said cannot buy a plot of land in Nigeria at the moment.
“After three decades of sacrifice, this is what I get? It’s disgraceful. They also refused to pay our SDA and other entitlements,” he stated.
The protesters claimed that the federal government is using a 2019 salary structure to compute their payments, despite adjustments made to the national minimum wage and military allowances since 2024.
They said this outdated payment system has been a key part of their frustration and decried being pressured to leave military barracks without receiving the “parking allowance” meant to facilitate their relocation.
“They didn’t pay us the money to move out, yet they’re evicting us,” said one retired officer.
According to the protesters, this systemic neglect has gone on for generations.
“They did this to our fathers and older brothers in the military. If we don’t speak up now, the same injustice will continue with the next generation,” one veteran warned.
