The Kwara State Government has disclosed that the Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki has returned all pensions collected from the state Government since he left office as the governor of the state. The Secretary to the Kwara State Government, Alhaji Isiaka Gold who made this known on Wednesday stated that the clarification became necessary following controversial and unverified media reports surrounding payment of pensions to former state governors of the state, particularly the Senate President.
Alhaji Gold explained that Saraki, having served as a governor of the state for two terms was entitled to pensions as stipulated by the third schedule, Paragraph D (i) of the Governor and Deputy Governor (Payment of Pension) Law, No. 12 of 2010 of Kwara State.
He further disclosed that on August 20, 2015 Saraki in a letter addressed to the state government requested for the stoppage of his pension and directed that payments made into his account be refunded to the government coffers, a directive that was promptly heeded.
According to him “the Government not only stopped the payment of the said pension, the amount already paid into Saraki’s account since he left office was deducted from the money owed to him as well as his other outstanding lawful entitlements. In view of the foregoing, it should be noted that neither the Kwara State Government, nor Saraki, violated the state pension law or any other law for that matter"
He noted that “the State Pension Law empowers the state government to pay pension to former governors of the state."
The statement added that “the Kwara State Government will want to reiterate the fact that it was Dr. Saraki who, of his own volition, considered the morality of the situation in which the pension would put him since he is still a serving Senator and chose to abandon his legal rights. We believe he should be commended for the decision.”
The SSG enthused that, “this clarification will end all the controversy about this issue.”
