Fiji National Provident Fund pensioners who have taken up a petition to the Prime Minister, Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama are now hoping that he will intervene and order an independent inquiry into how FNPF implemented the new pension scheme.
The petition signed by 450 of the 3,600 FNPF pensioners is calling on the Prime Minister to look at how the binding contracts of the current pensioners with the FNPF was broken.
Many of the pensioners' annual pensions have been reduced from 25 and 15 percent to about 9 percent under the new pension scheme.
One of the spokespersons for the FNPF pensioners, Pratap Singh hopes the Prime Minister will take action.
Singh said that they have been trying to meet with the FNPF CEO, Aisake Taito and have tried to communicate with him many times but they have not received a favourable response.
He said there was no other option but to go to the Prime Minister.
Singh said people should understand that they want their binding contract to be honored.
FNPF CEO, Aisake Taito has told Fijivillage this afternoon that the Fund is of the view that it is not appropriate to reverse the changes.
He said the Fund believes that there are no compelling reasons to do so.
Taito said the whole idea of the FNPF reforms is to ensure sustainability of the Fund in the longer term.
He said the FNPF does not intend anyone will be able to say in the future, as the World Bank and the IMF stated in 2007, that the financing of pensions represents a heavy subsidy from the young and poor to the old and better off people.
Taito also said that with the pension rates at 25 and 15 percent, every time a member retired at 55 years and converted $20,000 to a pension, the FNPF had to find a further $60,000 from somewhere else if the rate was 25 percent and a further $20,000 if it was 15 percent.
Prime Minister, Commodore Bainimarama is yet to see the petition of the FNPF pensioners.
Story by: Vijay Narayan
FNPF pensioners hope PM will take action
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