House Chairperson,
The ACDP notes that during the 6th Parliament, the Speaker of the National Assembly, referred a memorandum of grievances to the Public Service and Administration PC, concerning former civil servants and parastatal employees specifically pensioners from Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda, and Ciskei.
We further note, with great concern, that the grievances relate to unpaid pension funds, which were withheld due to discriminatory policies under the apartheid government based on race and gender.
The GPAA reported that it has paid 99.3% of the cases that met the eligibility criteria established, However, the leaders of the Pension Redress Movement dispute this and the process, citing a lack of consultation and exclusivity in the decision-making process.
The ACDP supports the recommendations of the PC calling for collaboration of stakeholders in accurately verifying and auditing the records of affected pensioners, the establishment of a fair and transparent procedure for pension payouts to all qualifying members, and the call for a comprehensive report on the developments related to the pensioners’ petition to be presented to the Joint Committee within three months.
In supporting this report, the ACDP asserts that our pensioners, who have given the best years of their lives in service to our country, must never be abandoned in the twilight years of their lives because of the greed and indifference by some officials in the GPAA and GEPF.
