A private legal practitioner and Senior Lecturer in Law, at Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Dr Justice Srem-Sai has expressed deep concern over the perceived mismanagement of Ghana’s pension funds by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust.
The renowned legal practitioner, commenting on the sale of SSNIT’s 60% share in its five hotels to Honorable Bryan Acheampong, strongly asserted that the perceived mismanagement of pension funds by the state body presents a troubling situation, one that demands immediate attention due to the nature of the funds involved.
The senior Lecturer in Law at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration began his remarks by underscoring the critical nature of SSNIT’s financial stewardship and why the ongoing scandal should not be ignored.
“We may have become so used to corruption and mismanagement of government money that we don’t seem to care about news of such things anymore. However, this SSNIT issue is a completely different one. It is a very serious issue because of the nature of the money which SSNIT holds and uses”.
Justice Srem-Sai. Senior Lecturer in Law, GIMPA
He explained that SSNIT, as a state financial service institution, does not use its own money but rather handles other people’s money, specifically, the personal money of Ghanaian workers.
Dr Srem-Sai further explained that when every Ghanaian worker receives their salaries, a portion is mandatorily deducted and handed over to SSNIT, stating that such money is not tax money or some ambiguous pool of funds but it is money that could otherwise go directly into the workers’ pockets.
He mentioned that the deduction of such an amount is due to the government-enacted laws that ensure that such a transfer is made with the intent of safeguarding such funds for the workers’ future.
Trust Fundamental to the very Existence of SSNIT
Furthermore, the private legal practitioner, Dr Justice Srem-Sai emphasized that the government’s rationale for creating SSNIT and enforcing such deductions is straightforward yet profound as people age, they naturally lose the ability to work and earn an income.
According to him, to ensure that citizens can support themselves in their old age, the government requires them to save a part of their earnings while working, stating that SSNIT was established with the promise of managing such savings more effectively than individuals could on their own.
He asserted that the arrangement is built on a sacred trust with the objective that SSNIT will protect and grow such funds so that when contributors retire, they can draw upon their savings to live with dignity and security, emphasizing that trust is fundamental to the very existence of SSNIT.
However, the renowned law lecturer argued that recent disclosures regarding the management of such funds have cast a dark shadow over SSNIT’s ability to fulfil its promise.
He recounted that earlier this year, it was revealed that SSNIT might be unable to pay pensions starting from the year 2037, adding that such revelation is shocking and raises urgent questions about the management decisions being made by SSNIT directors.
Dr Srem-Sai highlighted the gravity of the issue, stating that while misuse of public tax money is egregious, it is even more severe and dangerous for pension funds to be mismanaged, adding that individuals rely on such monies for their survival when they are no longer able to work.
The Consequences of Mismanagement
Touching on the consequences of the potential inability of SSNIT to pay future pensions, the renowned legal practitioner argued that such a situation would be a breach of trust.
He emphasized that, if in the unlikely situation SSNIT is unable to pay future pensions, it would mean that many Ghanaians, who have diligently contributed to SSNIT throughout their working lives, may find themselves without the financial support they were promised and have planned their lives around.
This, according to him, would not just be a matter of financial mismanagement but a total betrayal that could have devastating consequences for countless retirees.
Dr Justice Srem-Sai concluded by stating that urgent and decisive actions must be taken by relevant authorities to avert such an unfortunate situation, stressing that the mismanagement of SSNIT funds is not just another case of corruption but an existential threat to the financial security of Ghana’s retirees.
He emphasized that if SSNIT cannot be trusted to manage such funds responsibly, then urgent reforms are necessary to restore confidence and ensure that the promise made to Ghanaian workers is kept.
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