Proposed NSSF Bill will not improve retired workers’ welfare

In Summary

• If the National Social Security Fund has not been able to manage the Sh200 workers have been contributing, how will it manage the 12 per cent increment?
• From experience, NSSF has not been able to manage retirees’ benefits well. Many have died before receiving their dues from the social security fund.
• This has made the fund one of the biggest examples of corruption in the government and there is little to show whether this has changed.

The proposed NSSF Bill 2012 to convert workers contribution from the provident fund to a pension scheme is ill-timed and unacceptable since it will be of no value to many Kenyan workers.

The Bill, which also proposes to increase workers’ contributions of Sh200 per month to six per cent of the employee’s monthly pensionable pay plus the employer’s six per cent is unjustified.

If the National Social Security Fund has not been able to manage the Sh200 workers have been contributing, how will it manage the 12 per cent increment?

From experience, NSSF has not been able to manage retirees’ benefits well. Many have died before receiving their dues from the social security fund.

This has made the fund one of the biggest examples of corruption in the government and there is little to show whether this has changed.

This was the reason why most companies had to come up with their own pension schemes to protect their employees pension dues.

The only way for the government to ensure the welfare of its citizens is first to establish a strong welfare schemes for the elderly and unemployed.

Secondly, the government should reduce the rate of taxation on the pension dues or do away with it altogether since this money has already been used in many development projects.