No fewer than 20 retired senior public officers in Kaduna State have died without receiving their retirement entitlements, the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has alleged.

The affected retirees include former Permanent Secretaries, Secretaries to the State Government, and Heads of Service.

Musa said the deaths occurred amid prolonged delays in the payment of pensions and gratuities owed to retirees and disengaged workers by the state government.

According to him, pensioners had entered 2025 with renewed hope that the government would resolve the lingering issue of unpaid entitlements, but that optimism has continued to fade.

“We thought 2025 would be a year of hope and celebration for pensioners and those who lost their jobs in Kaduna State. But as the year progresses, that hope is gradually fading,” he said.

Musa alleged that despite court judgments ordering the payment of outstanding benefits, several senior former officials died without accessing their entitlements.

“About 20 people among former Permanent Secretaries, Secretaries to the State Government, and Heads of Service passed on without receiving their entitlements, even though there were court orders in their favour,” he stated.

He explained that many retirees rely solely on their pensions for survival, adding that the delays have severely affected their ability to access food, healthcare, and decent shelter.

Kaduna State has, in recent years, faced repeated complaints from labour unions and pensioners over delays in pension payments and the treatment of disengaged workers.

Although the state government has previously announced reforms aimed at sanitising the pension system and clearing arrears, pensioners insist that many retirees have yet to feel the impact of those measures.

Musa urged the state government to treat pension payments as both a legal and moral obligation, warning that continued delays would only deepen the hardship faced by elderly citizens.