Any retirement allowance or other annuity or benefit provided by Articles 1 and 3 shall be paid in equal monthly installments for life and shall not be increased, decreased, revoked or repealed, except for error upon detection, regardless of the length of time between the reporting error or the time payment started and the time the board became aware of the error, or except where specifically otherwise provided by said articles. This responsibility is, and has been, the duty of the board since the creation of the retirement system.
Pursuant to Section 25-11-111, Mississippi Code of 1972, it is and has been the sole responsibility of the member or beneficiary thereof to apply for benefits and no benefits shall be paid for any period prior to the first of the month following the receipt of such application for such benefits, but in no event prior to termination of employment, except as authorized in Section 25-11-114.