The Abia State Government has directed ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to identify civil servants due for retirement and ensure they take the mandatory three-month pre-retirement leave to facilitate timely pension payments.
The directive, contained in an internal memo dated October 12, 2026, was signed by the state Head of Service, Benson Ojeikere.
It requires permanent secretaries, heads of parastatals and heads of non-ministerial departments to compile lists of affected workers and ensure compliance with the policy.
The memo said the directive applied to officers retiring upon attaining the statutory age of 60 or completing 35 years in service, as well as directors affected by the eight-year tenure policy.
“Further to existing directives on public service retirements, all Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Parastatals and Heads of Non-Ministerial Departments are hereby directed to ensure full and timely compliance with the mandatory three months’ pre-retirement leave for all retiring officers,” the memo stated.
It also directed the heads of MDAs to ensure that retirement and pension documentation was completed within approved timelines.
The government said any operational challenges affecting implementation should be reported immediately to the Office of the Head of Service.
Speaking on the directive, Ojeikere confirmed the memo and disclosed that some affected workers were reluctant to proceed on leave.
He said the three-month period was designed to enable retiring civil servants to begin processing their pensions before their salaries stopped, reducing the gap between retirement and the commencement of pension payments.
“These three months are to enable them to start the process of working their pensions,” he said, adding that the government would continue paying their salaries during the period.
Ojeikere said delays in pension payments could leave retirees waiting for two to four months after leaving service before receiving their first pension.
“Somebody has retired; it is taking them two months, three months, four months before his pension starts being paid. It is not good for the image of the service and for the image of the state,” he said.
He explained that the policy was intended to ensure that retirees began receiving their pensions promptly after their salaries ended.
The Head of Service, however, acknowledged that exceptions might be necessary where an office urgently needed an outgoing officer and no suitable replacement was available.
In such cases, he said, the relevant office could write to the authorities to seek approval for the affected officer to remain temporarily.
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