PenCom DG Raises Alarm over Threat to Workers’ Livelihoods
…Joins ICPC to Recover Unremitted Pension Funds
By Patience Ikpeme
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has warned that unapplied pension contributions under the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and unremitted pension liabilities by some employers pose a serious threat to the financial security of Nigerian workers.
Director-General of PenCom, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, raised this concern during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between PenCom and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on pension assets recovery and compliance in Abuja.
According to her, “We still confront the troubling realities of unapplied contributions under the IPPIS platform and cases of unremitted pension liabilities by some employers. These lapses are not just administrative oversights. They are a direct threat to the livelihood and security of Nigerian workers.”
Oloworaran stated that although PenCom has made significant progress in enforcing compliance with the Pension Reform Act (PRA), the persistence of such lapses calls for stronger enforcement mechanisms and inter-agency collaboration.
She noted that PenCom had already recovered over ₦32 billion from defaulting employers through its recovery agents, but stressed that the work is far from done. “Every naira deducted by employers must be remitted. Every contribution must be properly accounted for. Every worker must be assured of a future that is secured,” she said.
The PenCom boss described the new partnership with the ICPC as a decisive step toward addressing the gaps that have hindered full compliance in the past. “This MoU provides a clear, coordinated framework to address these challenges. It is also about responsibility placed on employers by the government to contribute a portion of employees’ salaries toward their retirement. Our duty, both as regulators and as anti-corruption enforcers, is to ensure that this trust is never broken—or if it is, that it stops right now,” she said.
Under the agreement, PenCom and ICPC will jointly recover unapplied and unremitted pension contributions, ensure prompt disbursement of recovered funds into contributors’ Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs), and hold defaulting employers accountable in accordance with the law.
Oloworaran explained that both institutions have designated focal officers—the Director of Operations for ICPC and the Director of Surveillance for PenCom—to facilitate smooth coordination. “This structure ensures that information sharing, investigation, and enforcement happen with speed and precision,” she said.
She added that the partnership is also aimed at restoring public confidence in Nigeria’s pension system. “Together, we are demonstrating that public institutions can and must work in concert for the good of the Nigerian people. We are striving to rebuild confidence in the pension system and to ensure that every Nigerian worker receives in full, without delay, the benefits they have diligently earned,” she stated.
Representing the ICPC Chairman, the Commission’s Executive Secretary, Mr. Clifford Oparaodu, assured PenCom of the Commission’s readiness to act decisively against defaulters. “We will not disappoint you. We’ll work with you. All it takes is a phone call, you give us details, and we’ll go after those people,” he said.
Oparaodu warned that employers who divert or delay workers’ pension deductions are denying employees their right to dignity after years of service. “Just put yourself in a situation where you work 20, 25, or 30 years, and when you retire, there’s nothing to show for it. That is unacceptable,” he said.
He disclosed that the ICPC has already recovered over ₦1 billion from electricity distribution companies as part of its enforcement efforts. “The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) in Rivers State and AEDC have been made to cough out a lot of money. We are prepared to recover more and ensure that workers get what they are owed,” Oparaodu added.
Speaking on PenCom’s compliance drive, the Commission’s Head of Corporate Communications, Mr. Ibrahim Buwai, said PenCom’s enforcement activities have served as both deterrents and incentives for employers.
“In order to get organizations to comply, PenCom has been rolling out what I would call incentives. The enforcement actions by PenCom, in a way, are incentives, because the cost of non-compliance is very high,” Buwai said.
He explained that since PenCom appointed recovery agents in 2012 to pursue defaulting organizations, total recoveries have exceeded ₦32 billion, comprising ₦15 billion in principal contributions and over ₦16 billion in penalties.
“The message is simple: it is cheaper to comply. What we are doing today is also one of such incentives, whereby companies that do not comply will come under the hammer of the ICPC,” he stated.
The PenCom-ICPC collaboration, both institutions said, represents a renewed determination to strengthen Nigeria’s pension administration system, safeguard workers’ entitlements, and ensure full accountability among employers.
