The Association of Pension Desk Practitioners of Nigeria (ASSOPEP) says contrary to reports by the National Pension Commission(PenCom), it had never claimed to be consulting with or for any pension funds administrators. 

PenCom had on Friday issued a statement denouncing any association with ASSOPEP while also warning workers and retirees about its ‘illicit’ activities.

However, reacting to the allegations via a press statement made available to Peoples Gazette, ASSOPEP said it had “at no time claimed to be an affiliate or representative of  PenCom or any PFA or PFC at any time.”

“We have never collected money from anyone with a promise to assist him or her to recover their fund in the Pension system.

“Pencom or any PFA have not received any letter from ASSOPEP requesting for payment of any pension contributor neither has any contributor paid us to do so.

“ASSOPEP has never claimed to be consulting with or for any Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and PenCom.

“We rather engage in the training and retraining of Pension Desk practitioners and other employees to have adequate knowledge of Pension, retirement planning and entrepreneurship.

“In the course of our training, we have listened to challenges contributors face such as unremitted contribution by Employer to PFAs, and inability to access their Pension after retirement due to issues of documentation and advise accordingly,” the statement read in part. 

ASSOPEP said it also engages in advocacy work, citing its pension conference held in Abuja in 2012 where it called for N400 billion owed contributory pension scheme subscribers.