Heavy security presence was witnessed around the Ministry of Defence in Abuja on Wednesday as military retirees prepared to protest the alleged non-implementation of consequential adjustments to their pensions following salary increases approved for serving military personnel.
The deployment came ahead of the planned demonstration by the retired officers, who are demanding what they described as their constitutional entitlement to pension adjustments whenever there are upward reviews of the salaries and emoluments of serving personnel.
It was observed that at about 8am, there was a significant presence of security personnel drawn from the Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Immigration Service and Vehicle Inspection Officers.
Armed soldiers were seen patrolling the vicinity of the ministry, while security operatives took strategic positions at various points along roads leading to the proposed protest venue.
Two armoured personnel carriers were also stationed in the area, while more than 15 vehicles belonging to the police, Army, Immigration Service and VIO were positioned at both ends of roads around the ministry.
The heavy security presence appeared to be aimed at maintaining order and preventing any breakdown of law and order as the retirees prepared to converge on the ministry.
The retirees are protesting what they alleged to be the failure of relevant authorities to implement consequential adjustments to their pensions following salary increases approved for serving military personnel.
Innocent Azubike, one of the leaders of the retired officers, said the protest was intended to draw attention to what the retirees considered a violation of their constitutional pension rights.
According to Azubike, President Bola Tinubu approved an upward review of the salaries of military personnel in November 2025, an adjustment which, he argued, should have automatically resulted in a corresponding review of the pensions of retired personnel.
He alleged that despite repeated acknowledgements by senior military authorities that the President had approved the salary increase, the corresponding pension adjustment had not been implemented.
Azubike said the retirees had become increasingly concerned by what he described as changing explanations from the authorities regarding the implementation of the adjustment.
“We have a protest on Wednesday at the Ministry of Defence to demand our constitutional pension rights.
“In November last year, the President approved a new pay increase for the military, and it came with a consequential adjustment for retirees and pensioners. It was in the news throughout November, and the high military authorities repeatedly thanked the President for the gesture.
“But suddenly, in July and August, it was not implemented and they started changing their stories, as if it should be forgotten”, he said.
The retired officer also raised concerns over another salary increase announced for military personnel in August 2026, which is expected to take effect in September.
He alleged that while financial provisions had already been made for the implementation of the latest salary increase for serving personnel, pensioners were excluded from the computation for the corresponding pension adjustment.
According to him, the alleged exclusion of retirees from the latest adjustment was the immediate reason for the planned protest.
He stressed that the retirees were not opposed to improved remuneration for serving military personnel, but wanted the pension benefits of retired personnel to be reviewed accordingly.
“Another military salary increase was announced this August, totally ignoring that of last year. The new announcement is supposed to start implementation in September.
“They have computed the fund requirement for implementing this second announcement of pay increase. In their computation, they excluded pensioners and the consequential adjustment of pensioners’ pensions. That is the main issue we are protesting,” he said.
Azubike warned that failure to address the issue could create significant disparities among military personnel of the same rank and with comparable years of service, particularly between those who retired before and after the implementation of the new salary structure.
He argued that personnel retiring under the new salary structure could eventually receive substantially higher pensions than their colleagues of the same rank and with similar years of service who retired earlier.
“The implication is that when they raise the salary of serving personnel, those who will be retiring from the new salary scale, their pension will be far higher than that of their contemporaries of the same rank and equal number of years of service who had earlier retired,” he said.
The retirees are therefore demanding that the authorities address what they described as the disparity and ensure that pension adjustments are implemented alongside salary increases for serving personnel.
They also want the government to clarify the status of the November 2025 salary adjustment and explain why the corresponding consequential adjustment for pensioners has allegedly not been implemented.
The planned demonstration comes amid continuing concerns among retired military personnel over the adequacy of pensions and the need to ensure that retirement benefits remain aligned with improvements in the remuneration of serving officers.
The retirees insist that their demand is not for preferential treatment but for the implementation of what they consider an established principle of consequential pension adjustment whenever serving personnel receive salary increases.
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