The State Minister for Finance (General Duties), Hon. Henry Musasizi, has affirmed that savings in the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) are safe.
Musasizi made this assurance as he appeared before the Committee on Finance alongside the Minister for Gender Labour and Social Development, Hon. Betty Amongi, and NSSF acting Managing Director, Patrick Ayota on Tuesday 17th January 2023.
Recent allegations of corruption and mismanagement of the fund whose portfolio stands at Shs17.9 trillion have been circulating on both social and mainstream media outlets drawing anxiety among members of the public.
Other concerns revolved around the renewal of the contract for then Managing Director, Richard Byarugaba who had reached the retirement age of 60 years but also had served his two terms as chairperson of NSSF.
Now Minister Musasizi said that the funds were safe. His remarks came following concerns from the Chair and Vice Chairperson of the committee who asked if members’ funds were safe.
Musasizi’s reassurance provided relief to concerned members while affirming trust towards responsible management practices by NSSF.
“The members’ saving is safe…internal controls are very robust, everything is working well,” he said.
The Chairperson of the committee, Hon. Keefa Kiwanuka sought to understand how safe funds were and to their satisfaction, NSSF presented a statement indicating that investments were in fixed assets which can be traded.
According to Patrick Ayota, there is a need to penetrate the informal sector to widen social security coverage. He said the fund was performing extremely well and making a profit.
Butambala County Member of Parliament, Hon. Muwanga Kivumbi tabled a letter on alleged corruption but the chairperson requested the time before considering it further.
The membership of NSSF currently stands at 1.3 million savers with an employer base of 27,628.