MYLES Laroda, state minister with responsibility for the National Insurance Board, at an Elizabeth constituency community meeting this week.
MYLES Laroda, state minister with responsibility for the National Insurance Board, wants to assure the public that the NIB fund is not facing a liquidity crisis.
Mr Laroda contacted The Tribune yesterday to clarify comments he made during a Progressive Liberal Party Elizabeth constituency branch meeting on Tuesday night.
At the meeting, the minister told party supporters that the NIB fund is “basically running on fumes” and can only be stabilised when the contribution rate is increased by 1.5 per cent for the third or fourth time in the future.
He said extending the retirement age, cutting benefits, or combining these two options would not address the problem.
Mr Laroda said while he stands by his earlier remarks, he also doesn’t want people to get the wrong idea and believe that NIB is having a “liquidity problem”.
He gave an assurance that pensioners will still be paid as scheduled after concerns were raised over the issue following The Tribune’s publication of Mr Laroda’s remarks.
“While we all know that the actuarial report says that the fund, if matters are not addressed, will be depleted by 2028, at this time and (in the)foreseeable future, NIB has no liquidity issues and are able to meet their obligations,” he said.
“The point I was making is that its dire and when you look at a fund that’s supposed to be liquid for 30 to 40 years, when you compare that to the statement of the actuarial report that says that five years from now, the fund would collapse. I was referencing that in the big picture (and) not at this point that National Insurance (will not be able) to meet their obligations.”
Comments
benniesun 1 year, 6 months ago
The very generously paid professionals have spoken and no amount of backtracking can change that.
Blacks Law dictionary defines liquidity as: 1. The quality or state of being readily convertible to cash. 2.Securities. The characteristic of having enough units in the market that large transactions can occur without substantial price variations.
Having something available for sale is not the same as having buyers lined up for the sale, and we all know the current and projected conditions of the market.
ThisIsOurs 1 year, 6 months ago
"the minister told party supporters that the NIB fund is “basically running on fumes". That's a phrase I use all the time to boost confidence
themessenger 1 year, 6 months ago
Mr. Laroda, when will the fund receive that huge infusion of cash, that windfall resulting from the government repaying all of the money that they've "borrowed" over the last four decades?
hrysippus 1 year, 6 months ago
A brief recap, and corrections to recollections are welcomed. Mr. M. Laroda was appointed to a government position which included responsibility for ensuring that elected members and senior civil servants declared their worth, which findings were then, by law, to be gazette within a specific time frame. This did not happen. It might be seen by some that the appointment to a post as a cabinet minister with the healthy salary and many perks was a reward for not doing his job. It was not, or so I believe, the government just could not find another candidate both willing and able to take on this poison chalice called NIB. Does Mr. Laroda get an additional salary for heading up the fund in addition to his ministerial salary? Probably but we will likely never find out.Do, Again, we will likely never be told. Is Mr. Laroda telling the truth about the state of the NIB fund? Yes of course, that is his job.
benniesun 1 year, 6 months ago
Amazing... Two vital entities, located next to each other on Baillou Hill Rd, both are drowning. BEC was successful until the PLP messed it up with inept management and ill thought out policies. NIB was built in the public dump - yes, we stashed our retirement monies in a dump site; a site meant for discarding useless things. Seems that our retirement monies are taking on the characteristics of the buried contents of that site.
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