The Democratic Alliance (DA) has long been fighting for justice for Renosterberg municipal employees who lost their pension funds due to municipal management failing to pay over pension contributions. We welcome criminal action being taken in response to this matter.
In October last year, I laid criminal charges against the municipal management of Renosterberg municipality in relation to its transgression of Section 13A of the Pension Funds Act, 1965. At the time, arrear pension fund contributions were believed to extend from as far back as October 2017, totaling more than R22 million.
We note the case currently under investigation by the Kimberley Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit, whereby two former Municipal Managers and a current unit manager of Renosterberg have apparently been charged with fraud/theft, contravention of Municipal Finance Management Act, and Pension Funds Act, in relation to the Municipal Workers Retirement Fund and LA Retirement Fund suffering prejudice to the total value of R73 563 652.
This will be the second such case to be taken to court in the Northern Cape, in which we have played a key role. In as far back as 2017, the DA laid criminal charges against Kai !Garib municipality for pension fund fraud, after which we reported our concerns to the Public Protector in 2020, following a lack of action being taken. In 2022, the former Municipal Manager of Kai !Garib municipality, Johnny Mackay, was eventually arrested on charges relating to the contravention of the Pension Funds Act.
Pension crimes are an assault on the future and dignity of municipal employees, who have dedicated years to the service of their employer and the public. Aside from the risk of the loss of their safety net that should have carried them through their retirement, harsh consequences for employees include that risk benefits, such as funeral, death and disability cover cannot be paid should a claim arise during this time.
The DA will monitor the Renosterberg case, and the ongoing Kai !Garib case, closely.
It is high time that an example is made of defaulting municipalities like Renosterberg and Kai !Garib, and that those disadvantaged by the non-payment of monthly contributions to pension funds, are compensated for their loss.