BY SAM OTUONYE
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has enlisted the support of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to prevail on electricity Generation Companies (GENCOs) and Distribution Companies (DISCOs) to settle unpaid pension contributions for their employees.
PenCom Director General, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, on Friday led a delegation to NERC headquarters to seek its intervention in addressing the non-compliance by 16 electricity companies who have failed to remit billions of naira in pension contributions and associated penalties, despite multiple warnings and enforcement attempts, including out-of-court settlement orders.
Ms. Oloworaran urged NERC to reinforce compliance with the Pension Reform Act 2014 (PRA 2014) by making the presentation of a valid Pension Clearance Certificate issued by PenCom, a mandatory requirement for licensing and other regulatory approvals granted to power companies.
She emphasised that as the regulator of the electricity sector, NERC has a critical role in ensuring that private entities under its jurisdiction including GenCOs and DisCOs fulfil their statutory obligations to deduct and remit monthly pension contributions for their employees to their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).
PenCom DG stated that the Commission had deployed Recovery Agents to establish and recover outstanding pension contributions across the private sector, expressing concern that several electricity companies have continued to ignore their obligations even after these Recovery Agents established their liabilities.
In response, NERC Chairman, Engr. Sanusi Garba, assured PenCom of the Commission’s readiness to collaborate in enforcing pension compliance. He stressed the need for a thorough reconciliation of all outstanding liabilities and pledged NERC’s support in finding a sustainable resolution to the issue.
To facilitate ongoing collaboration, PenCom and NERC established a joint working group tasked with addressing the pension compliance challenges in the power sector.