The National Social Security Authority (NSSA) has vowed to take action against officials implicated in looting the state-run pension fund following a new forensic audit.
In an interview with the Zimbabwe Independent, NSSA board chairman Emmanuel Fundira said that the authority was working through the audit before taking any action. Fundira stated that NSSA wanted to “clear all the mess which has been existing in NSSA”. He said:
We want to clear all the mess which has been existing in Nssa. There have been correct and serious observations made in the audit and we are going to follow that as a bible and make sure that people are accountable for their transgressions.
Fundira who was appointed chairman in May spoke after a ceremony to honour outstanding insurers at the Independent Insurance Survey Awards 2023 on Wednesday this week.
The announcement follows the authority’s success at the 2023 Good Practice Awards in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, where NSSA won three certificates of merit in recognition of service delivery initiatives. NSSA also won three awards at the Independent Insurance Survey Awards 2023.
NSSA’s acting general manager, Charles Shava, said that the awards demonstrate the authority’s journey towards service delivery excellence. He said NSSA’s vision is to become a world-class provider of social security by 2030, and Shava emphasised the importance of investing in technology to achieve this goal.
NSSA has over the years lost millions of dollars through corruption by some of the officials and some senior government officials, including former Public Service minister Priscah Mupfumira, who allegedly prejudiced the authority of US$6.5 million. The case is still pending. Corruption has resulted in the authority’s inability to pay pensioners. Some government retirees are reportedly receiving only US$35 as their pension pay-outs, despite decades of loyal service.