Martin Endjala
The National Union of Namibian Workers has called for the rejection of the planned consultations on the Financial Institution and Markets Act, that propose.
The secretary general Job Muniaro made this appeal during a media conference on Wednesday.
“Our call for this rejection is based on the fact that our members are expected to take care of their education and health as well as that of their children using their pension savings,” Muniaro emphasized.
Further lamented that the exiting pension funds under permitted conditions mitigate the impact relating to their survival, economic and other needs as a result of the high rate of unemployment amongst others, while the FIMA Act seeks to curtail such opportunity.
The NUNW regards it as crucial and as a necessary and mandatory to reject the FIMA Act stating that it is not in the best interest of the public particularly members of NUNW.
He pointed out that the six-month period given to the public for input is not enough as the act will be operationalized come 1 October 2022.
The SG argued that NUWN is a recognized bargaining agent, hence the issue should have been place on the table during wage negotiations that ended late last month, pointing out that both NAMFISA and FIMA failed to consult them.
The process of sourcing input on the FIMA Law, the relevant Cabinet Committee and NAMFISA were supposed to consult NUNW to achieve the same objective.
Muniaro emphasized that it is a blow below the belt for the same relevant Cabinet Institutions of Government and NAMFISA under the Ministry of Finance to only speak about consultations now that the issue has become a hot potato.
They, he said, have chosen to pass the FIMA law without granting NUNW an opportunity to raise its concerns.
Muniaro continued to say that it is a common cause that this law affects the interest of the public directly, because it has a tremendous economic impact in its provisions for the so-called harmonization of laws regulating financial institutions, financial intermediaries, financial markets among other.
The formulation of this law needed an extensive consultation process with all stakeholders including workers through NUNW. The enactment of FIMA Act in its current form is highly detrimental to the workers of Namibia who are members of pension funds, said Muniaro.
The regulations being formulated are aimed to deprive them of their entitlement through curtailing access to pension funds across different categories and classifications more particularly when members cease to be active members of any given fund before their retirement age.
“The claim by NAMFISA that it has consulted the workers through trustee boards pension funds,’’
Muniaro stated is not true. He further blamed elected members of Parliament for having failed in their fiduciary duties to consult their electorate on a matter so sensitive.
