PenCom DG doubles down, rebukes frivolous petitions, blackmailers

The Director-General, National Pension Commission (PenCom), Mrs. Aisha Dahir-Umar, on Saturday condemned what she termed a coordinated plan to bring the commission into disrepute through frivolous petitions to anti-graft agencies.

She said the attacks had been perpetrated with the help of some disgruntled insiders within the commission.

Dahir-Umar, however, insisted that the commission had nothing to hide, adding that it is ready to open its books for scrutiny.

The PenCom boss, in a statement, said, “PenCom is aware of a coordinated plan to bring the commission into disrepute with frivolous petitions to the anti-graft agencies in collaboration with disgruntled insiders.

“These elements, some of whom are yet to come to terms with the fact that PenCom is no longer at their beck and call, have been sponsoring negative media reports and getting faceless groups to write frivolous petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).”

Dahir-Umar pointed out that since she took over as DG, the commission had undertaken far-reaching reforms, which are already yielding positive results, insisting that the era of impunity had been put to an end.

She said, “Those who think they can use the commission to make money or that they should be the ones calling the shots are bitterly disappointed and are sponsoring false publications and trumped-up petitions. We will cooperate fully with the agencies.

“Our message to the disgruntled elements today is exactly as it was yesterday, we will not allow anyone to pilfer pension funds for self-aggrandisement. It will never happen under my watch.

“We would have surrendered to the agents of blackmail who have been on our case since 2017 when I became acting DG.”

She added, “Although some low-level media outfits are giving a voice to these defamatory petitions, those who know how we conduct our affairs at PenCom are not in any way bothered.”