The Federal Government has commenced payment of N18bn in outstanding severance benefits to 2,700 former employees of the defunct Nigeria Airways, more than two decades after the national carrier was liquidated.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this on Friday, September 11, during a press briefing at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja.
Oyedele said 2,100 former workers in batches one to seven had been paid, while another 600 beneficiaries in batches eight and nine had been cleared for payment.
“Altogether, this represents N18bn in benefits for 2,700 former workers,” he said.
The minister said the prolonged wait had taken a toll on the former workers, with some growing old while awaiting their entitlements and others dying before receiving them.
“For more than two decades, following the liquidation of Nigeria Airways, many former employees have waited for their outstanding severance benefits.
“Some have grown old waiting. Some have sadly passed away, leaving their families to pursue what was legitimately due to them,” Oyedele said.
He said the payment followed President Bola Tinubu’s directive to resolve the long-standing obligation.
“We recognise that no payment today can fully compensate for more than two decades of waiting, but it is important that government confronts these long-standing obligations rather than allowing them to remain unresolved for another generation,” he added.
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Oyedele said the exercise was part of efforts to clear verified inherited obligations, including payments to pensioners and indigenous contractors.
He said extensive verification, including biometric capture and validation of personal and banking details, was conducted to prevent fraudulent claims.
Further verification would address outdated records, incorrect bank details and deceased beneficiaries.
The minister said the government was paying documented and verified amounts, without inflation adjustment, despite the substantial loss in purchasing power over the years.
Oyedele also disclosed that more than 12,000 indigenous contractors had received payments, with smaller claims prioritised.
He warned contractors against paying commissions or inducements to officials to facilitate payments, describing such demands as illegal.
He said, “We will do our best to ensure that the accumulated obligations of the past do not repeat themselves.”
Oyedele apologised to the former workers for the delay, stressing that the payments were entitlements, not government favours.