Some contributors to the Social Security National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) pension scheme in Tema have expressed worry over the challenges facing the scheme and its impact on the payment of benefits to pensioners.
They mentioned challenges such as the late payment of contributions to the scheme by the government, the lack of payment of the Tier 2 pension contribution, which is a mandatory occupational pension scheme that is fully funded and privately managed, as well as the current sale of 60 percent of SSNIT’s stake in top-class hotels to private investors.
The contributors told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in a random survey that such issues were worrying and, therefore, appealed to the government to listen to Ghanaians, halt the sale of SSNIT majority shares in hotels, and promptly pay Tier 2 and SSNIT contributions to boost the interest and confidence of workers to contribute to the scheme.
They mentioned that such challenges, coupled with the inclusion of pension bondholders in the domestic exchange programme, have put many contributors in a state of worry for fear of not receiving what is due them when they go on pension.
They said some contributors may be forced out of service due to ill-health and may have to depend on such contributions and private investments to survive; therefore, such schemes must be handled well by the government.
“As for me, I always say that our leaders do not think about us. Why will they play with our future? Why will they do things? Upon several calls, nothing has been done. It’s very sad. Our retirement is being threatened. Look at how senior citizens demonstrated that for their own money,” Ms. Victoria Asare, a nurse, said.
“The government’s silence over the sale of the hotels is deafening. What at all do these people want? They, the politicians, have left their work and amassed wealth, and nothing has been done. Well, the youth are not angry enough, and it is only in this country that this can happen,” Mr. Cephas Kumi, a civil servant, stated.
He added, “You see, they do the things, and they go escape-free; there is no accountability, nothing; they are the most powerful; they do what they like; as for the SSNIT issue, the least said, the better.”
Meanwhile, some informal sector workers stated that they would prefer saving their retirement package privately rather than joining the SSNIT pension scheme.
“As for me, I would rather hide the money in my house than give the money to these people to use; we all need to secure ourselves just as the leaders are also securing themselves; when you get older, it will be you alone,” Mrs. Patricia Yartey, a fish seller, said.
By Elizabeth Larkwor Baah
GNA
