About sh2.5b lost to ‘ghost’ pensioners

Nov 15, 2007

AT least sh2.5b is suspected to have been lost through the payment of ‘ghost’ pensioners.

By Mary Karugaba

AT least sh2.5b is suspected to have been lost through the payment of ‘ghost’ pensioners.

A whistle blower submitted documents to the parliamentary public accounts committee claiming that some of the pension arrears paid out last month might have been given to ‘ghosts.’

According to the documents, 1,039 out of the 12,080 names on the pensioners’ list were fraudulent.

The study, carried out by one of the pensioners’ co-operative societies in Western Uganda, claimed that names listed were of people who did not have pension file numbers or pay code numbers.
Other names were similar, had the same pin numbers but were people from different districts, it said.

Out of 866 names indicated for payment in July, 122 names were doubtful, according to the study, and out of the 11,214 names listed for September, 971 were suspected to be false.

On the list of September for Masaka, 252 pensioners were indicated for payment but 27 names were discovered to have been without pension files and pay codes, it stated.

The pensioners’ association blamed corrupt officials within the ministry, claiming payments were done “through a well manipulated and managed racket of corrupt and organised pension officials.”

Opposition MP Ssebuliba Mutumba (DP) said Parliament was investigating the matter.

“We are going to move very fast. We have demanded for the soft copy of the pension list from the Ministry of Public Service. We shall catch the culprit,” he said.

However, the commissioner for pensions in the ministry of Public Service, Nkusa Kiwanuka, denied the claims, saying all the names had been verified and approved.

“I am not aware of any ghost names,” he said.

“The names were verified and published. I cannot be careless to publish ghost names. Let them bring the ghosts’ names and cross-check with me.”

The New Vision last month published the full list of 11,214 pensioners whose arrears, amounting to a total of sh60b, had been transferred to their bank accounts.

The list detailed names of retired public servants of the East African Community, who had been waiting for their benefits for up to 30 years.

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