In a statement yesterday, Public Service, Labour and Social
Welfare Minister, Professor Paul Mavima, said he had immediately tasked the
NSSA board to institute full investigations into the allegations that have been
raised against NSSA and ensure appropriate action was taken.
Prof Mavima’s concern dovetails with that of President
Mnangagwa, who has called for action against NSSA, which he said had become a
source of headache to the Government.
Writing in his weekly column in The Sunday Mail yesterday,
President Mnangagwa said he continued to receive disturbing reports about NSSA,
which he said has failed to rise to Government expectations as it was pushing
workers into abject poverty upon retirement.
President Mnangagwa said it was time that decisive action
was taken in dealing with those behind the rot at NSSA and “relocate the
headache to where it should be suffered”.
In his statement yesterday, Prof Mavima said the Government
wanted NSSA to get back on track.
“There have been several social media postings and articles
with allegations and counter allegations on what is going on at the National
Social Security Authority. I wish to assure all our stakeholders and the
general public that I and indeed the entire Ministry of Public Service, Labour
and Social Welfare, are concerned with these allegations,” said Prof Mavima.
“I have immediately tasked the board of NSSA to fully
investigate all matters that have been raised and take appropriate and decisive
action where wrongdoing is detected. But above all, we want NSSA to get back on
track and resume the impressive turn-around trajectory the authority had
planned.”
He had directed NSSA to focus on matters of social security
and prudent investment.
“NSSA has rebranded and I have mandated the authority to
focus on matters of social security and prudent investments all in a bid to
improve the welfare of pensioners and contribute meaningfully to the
socio-economic transformation of the entire Zimbabwean nation,” he said.
“Meanwhile, I wish to assure all concerned that NSSA
remains functional as a key national institution and the outcome of the
investigations which are already underway will be made public,” he said.
His ministry would continue to uphold principles of good
corporate governance and transparency in a bid to achieve the vision of an
upper middle income economy by 2030 set by President Mnangagwa.
In his column, President Mnangagwa said on the eve of his
departure for Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum (WEF), he got a
disheartening report pointing to corporate rot at NSSA.
“This isn’t the first time Government had got such a
disturbing report; NSSA has been a thorn in our flesh, a pain that will not go
away.
“Why such a cash-rich institution with such a wide remit on
investment possibilities simply decides to stash millions, and abuse no less,
in a country and economy so embattled by both endogenous and exogenous
adversities, no sane human being can ever fathom, least of all those of us in
Government,” he said.
“NSSA’s equivalents in various jurisdictions are on the
cutting edge of public investments. They determine national course and
direction. Not so our NSSA here. All it does is to give us headaches, while
pushing workers into abject misery on retirement.
“The time may have now come for us to relocate the headache
to where it should be suffered, namely in heads of those begetting corporate
malfeasances, all to our collective detriment.”
President Mnangagwa also castigated other State entities
such as Cottco and the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe which
needed to pull up their socks. Herald
0 comments:
Post a Comment