Public Protector urges delegates to develop clear criteria for pension payouts

The Public Protector Adv Mabedle Lawrence Mushwana today opened a two-day workshop on undue delays in the payment of pension benefits to civil servants or their beneficiaries.

The conference is attended by investigators from the Public Protector’s office, human resource managers in the national, provincial and local government departments, as well as the Government Employees Pension Fund.

Mushwana said the Public Protector’s office was established in terms of Chapter 9 of the Constitution, together with other institutions such as the Auditor General, Human Rights Commission, and Commission on Gender Equality, to ensure that the constitution was implemented properly.

He said the public service was there to deliver quality services to the people and in line with the principles of Batho Pele. “As the Public Protector, our main focus is on service delivery. We expect government in all the three spheres to render quality services to our people. If that is not happening we should be able to intervene and check the cause of the problem. We currently see service delivery uprisings from corner to corner of our country. That tells you that something is happening that is not right,” Mushwana said.

Mushwana said the workshop was a culmination of a year-long investigation into reasons for undue delays in the payment of pension benefits to civil servants or their beneficiaries. He said when people complained to the Public Protector, they were often in a dire financial situation due to delays in receiving what was due to them.

“These individuals, when it comes to pensions, are quiet desperate. Some have lost their loved ones and some are old. It is not correct that they should go for a year without pension due to them. Some have come to our offices with writs threatening to take their houses from them as they wait for their pension payouts. We are dealing with very fragile people. Therefore we need to move with haste to protect our people,” Mushwana said.

Mushwana urged delegates to come up with minimum standards in terms of payment of pension benefits so that people who need such services are able to access them without difficulty.

“We should also say what is in place if we do not adhere to certain minimum standards. If I lose my house while in the meantime waiting for longer than necessary for my pension, who should pay for the loss?” Mushwana said.

Mushwana also paid tribute to women, saying that it was fitting that the workshop was held during women’s month in August as investigators leading the investigation were women, and they had organised the workshop.

Senior investigator in the Public Protector’s office Mrs Sanelle Viviers said about 11 percent of complaints received last year, out of an average of 15000 complaints, were related to delays in pension payouts. This contributed to the office conducting a wider investigation into the root cause of these delays .

Mr Mario Lindeque, a representative from the Government Employees Pension Fund said it took on average 87 days to process a payment when it reached them. They sometimes find that they have to send it back to departments to correct errors. Departments could also take some time before forwarding pension documents to them, which could mean that a person would receive their payout after five months.

A final report with recommendations will be issued towards the end this year.

For more information, contact Charles Phahlane on 012 366 7006 or 082 856 8188.

For media releases, speeches and reports visit the Public Protector’s website www.publicprotector.org