The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Once again I find it necessary to put pen to paper and express a growing concern for the citizenry of The Bahamas.

It was interesting to learn that, according to the minister with responsibility for National Insurance, $27m are paid monthly in pensions while only $23m are collected. This is a shortfall of $4m monthly. He goes on to say that we cannot blame our citizens for living longer. What a hogwash statement.

Everyone and their dog knows the truth about NIB and while increasing the rate and extending the retirement age may be an immediate fix, we must push for some legislation that will protect these funds from being “borrowed” by all and sundry for things not related to the welfare of the Bahamian people. The only ministries that should be able to “borrow”, and only in an extreme emergency, should be the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Services. If the administrators of the government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas deems it necessary to invest some of the money in the NIB account, that investment should be laid in the House of Parliament and passed so that the people are fully aware of how the monies are used.

For too long these funds have served as a “cash cow” for political cronies to dip into with no hindsight for the future. Yes, we had a catastrophic hurricane followed by a worldwide pandemic and had to rely on this account. What we should have been using was the interest accumulated and dividends gained from investments set aside and earmarked for emergencies had this account been managed properly. The time is now to take a proper look at the structure of the funds and set in place measures to prevent the unnecessary depletion of the National Insurance funds.

As our nation strives to become healthier, we will, as a people, live longer. We cannot and should not have to adjust one’s retirement age to correct the bad decisions and ill judgement of our Administrators.

Many that sit in Parliament now have at least twenty-five to thirty years to go before they can claim a pension. Please put party colours aside and ensure the sustainability of these funds so that when your time comes you are able to benefit.

Let us make this make sense.

VANESSA A SCOTT, JP

Nassau.

February 14, 2023