Angry Retired Soldiers Barricade Finance Ministry Over Unpaid Benefits

A group of recently retired soldiers stormed and shut down the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja on Monday, protesting the non-payment of their gratuities, Security Debarment Allowance (SDA), and other entitlements.

The ex-servicemen, comprising both male and female personnel who voluntarily disengaged from the Nigerian Army in the first and second quarters of 2024, arrived at the ministry’s premises as early as 7 a.m., blocking the main entrance and denying staff access to their offices for several hours.

Many of the protesters were dressed in military camouflage, chanting solidarity songs and waving placards that read: “We are 1st and 2nd Quarter Retirees of NA 2003. We are living heroes and deserve to be recognized and treated right—not celebrated as fallen heroes when we are no more,” and “We the voluntary discharged soldiers of 2024 demand full payment of our benefits, including shortfalls in gratuity, SDA, parking allowance and four months’ salary cuts.”

The demonstrators, under the banner of the Voluntary Discharged Soldiers, demanded the immediate settlement of outstanding allowances, unpaid salaries, pensions, and the palliative wage award recently introduced by the Federal Government. They threatened to remain at the ministry until their demands were addressed.

One of the protesters, Sgt Idris Usman, expressed his frustration:

“Our disengagement was done formally through the system, yet they’re now telling us we’re not entitled to minimum wage adjustments or palliatives because we left in July.”

Another retired soldier, Corporal Umar Faruq, faulted the Military Pensions Board (MPB) for allegedly excluding them from the new national minimum wage implementation due to the timing of their discharge.

“A key grievance is the MPB’s claim that we are not entitled to the new national minimum wage because we were discharged on July 1, 2024,” he said.

The protest brought operations at the ministry to a standstill, prompting the deployment of soldiers and other security operatives to maintain order and protect the facility.

In a bid to de-escalate tensions, the Chairman of the Military Pensions Board, Air Vice Marshal Abubakar Adamu, alongside other senior military officials, approached the aggrieved ex-soldiers to appeal for calm. However, their efforts were initially rebuffed by the protesters who insisted on concrete action rather than verbal assurances.

Subsequently, top officials of the Finance Ministry arrived at the protest site and invited representatives of the retirees, along with the MPB chairman, for a closed-door meeting aimed at resolving the impasse.

While no official statement was issued at the end of the meeting, sources confirmed that government representatives pleaded for patience, assuring the ex-servicemen that discussions would be initiated with relevant agencies to address their grievances comprehensively.

Despite the intervention, the ex-soldiers vowed to continue pressing for their entitlements until firm commitments are made and fulfilled by the authorities.