Retired Nigerian military personnel suspended a planned demonstration on Wednesday following assurances from the Ministry of Defence that their grievances regarding pension adjustments and welfare would be addressed.
The breakthrough came after representatives of the ex-servicemen met with ministry officials at Ship House, Abuja. The protest had earlier faced severe disruption when police officers and armed soldiers were heavily deployed to cordon off the area.
Col Innocent Azubike (retd.), speaking on behalf of the ex-servicemen, confirmed that the government had recognised their claims as genuine and commenced steps to compute their consequential allowances.
“That was mission achieved as far as we are concerned,” Azubike said, noting that heightened media exposure pushed the authorities to act quickly to avoid a public scandal. He added: “At this moment, for me, I will be getting back to my station. All our people have dispersed.”
In an official statement released by ministry spokesman Henshaw Ogubike, the Minister of Defence, Gen Christopher Musa (retd.), represented by Permanent Secretary Richard Pheelangwah, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to resolving the veterans’ financial concerns.
Musa stated that issues surrounding allowances were receiving urgent attention, with financial, military, and pension authorities working toward a “fair, sustainable and implementable resolution that ensures veterans are not unfairly disadvantaged”.
Appealing for calm, the minister stressed that “any adjustment to veterans’ entitlements must be properly computed, adequately funded and implemented in accordance with extant approvals, regulations and due process”. He pledged that the ministry would maintain continuous dialogue with representatives to keep the veterans updated as negotiations progress.