The Federal Government has commenced the payment of ₦18 billion in outstanding severance benefits to 2,700 former workers 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 during a press briefing at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja.
Oyedele said 2,100 former workers in batches one to seven had already received their payments, 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,” the minister said.
Some Beneficiaries Died While Waiting
Oyedele said the prolonged delay had affected many former Nigeria Airways workers, with some growing old while waiting for 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,” he said.
“Some have grown old waiting. Some have sadly passed away, leaving their families to pursue what was legitimately due to them.”
The minister said the payment followed a directive from President Bola Tinubu to resolve the long-standing obligation.
He acknowledged that the settlement could not fully compensate beneficiaries for more than 20 years of waiting but said the government had chosen to address the inherited liability rather than allow it to remain unresolved.
Government Conducts Verification
According to Oyedele, the payment process followed extensive verification, including biometric capture and validation of beneficiaries’ personal and banking information.
He said the measures were introduced to prevent fraudulent claims and ensure that payments reached legitimate beneficiaries.
The government will also conduct further verification in cases involving outdated information, incorrect bank details and beneficiaries who have died.
For deceased beneficiaries, Oyedele said payments would be made to their documented next of kin or estates after the necessary legal processes are completed.
No Inflation Adjustment
Responding to questions about whether the benefits had been adjusted to reflect inflation over the more than two-decade period, Oyedele said the government was paying the amounts documented and verified.
He acknowledged that inflation had significantly reduced the value of the money over the years but said there was no provision for inflation adjustments under the settlement.
The minister also said the payments were being made in batches so that verified beneficiaries would not have to wait for all outstanding claims to be completed.
The benefits, he added, covered different categories of former Nigeria Airways employees, without distinction between junior and senior workers.
FG Pays Over 12,000 Indigenous Contractors
Oyedele further disclosed that the Federal Government had paid outstanding obligations to more than 12,000 indigenous contractors as part of efforts to clear accumulated debts.
He said the government initially prioritised smaller contractors owed ₦50 million or less before extending payments to verified claims of up to ₦100 million.
Larger claims running into billions of naira, he explained, could be addressed separately through negotiations and instruments such as promissory notes.
The minister said the approach was designed to support small businesses that depend on government payments to meet salaries and other immediate financial obligations.
He also warned contractors against paying commissions or inducements to government officials to facilitate payment of verified claims, describing such demands as illegal.
FG Moves to Prevent New Accumulated Debts
Oyedele said the government was working to prevent another accumulation of unpaid obligations by making budgets more realistic and ensuring that capital expenditure commitments were backed by identifiable sources of funding.
“We will do our best to ensure that the accumulated obligations of the past do not repeat themselves,” he said.
The minister apologised to former Nigeria Airways workers for the prolonged delay, stressing that the payments represented their legitimate entitlements and were not favours from the government.
