Lagos State Govt Kickstarts Online Verification Of Local Government Pensioners

The Office of Local Government Establishments, Training and Pensions has commenced the online “I’m Alive” verification exercise for pensioners to determine the current status of all Local Government Pensioners.

In her address at the flag-off ceremony held recently in the Local Government Staff Pensions Board Office, PWD, lkeja, the Permanent Secretary, Local Government Establishments, Training and Pensions, Mrs. Kikelomo Bolarinwa, stated that the exercise is scheduled to hold from Monday, 25th July to Friday 26th August 2022.

She urged retirees to take advantage of the electronic verification, pointing out that the exercise was designed to resolve issues of safety and eliminate inconvenience for the retirees.

Her words: “The successes recorded in the last two editions held in Y2020 and Y2021, which were done virtually, saved our senior citizens precious time and eliminated the stress of visiting the office as they were verified via WhatsApp video call within the comfort of their homes, including those in diaspora”.

The Permanent Secretary, therefore, urged the pensioners to have a personal WhatsApp-enabled Android Phone or any other one with internet access, while also having their service documents handy to confirm certain information during the exercise.

Bolarinwa further stated that the exercise is also geared towards effective record cleaning as few retirees might have passed away, urging the pensioners to be patient with the process as they will be notified a day before the scheduled date to confirm their availability and time.

“We expect to verify close to 6500 pensioners, hence the Office has carefully drawn a schedule for the exercise. Pensioners would have to be patient if they are not called on time. I am assuring them that nobody would be left unverified”, she said.

Also speaking at the event, the Chairman, Local Government Staff Pensions Board, Mr. Kamal Abiodun Bayewu, reiterated that the exercise was designed for the convenience of pensioners so that they can partake from any part of the world via technology.

“We are mindful of challenges with the internet. As such, we advise everyone concerned to exercise patience for successful verification. The exercise would also afford us the opportunity to know how well they are doing in retirement”, Bayewu noted.

The Chairman expressed his appreciation to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for his efforts in ensuring that pensioners enjoy life in retirement.

One of the pensioners at the event expressed gratitude and satisfaction with the level of organisation by the Office, noting that the laudable initiative is a welcome development for the pensioners.