Penalised for thrift

Jan 07, 2009

When all is said and done, the recent pension/old age grant glitch untruth/debacle has once again highlighted that many senior citizens are penalized for thrift and saving.

The reality is that if you have never worked in an environment that allowed you to contribute to a pension or NIS, or you were unable to save, you are entitled to a $1950.00 grant. But if you worked hard all your life and paid your NIS contributions religiously so that you now receive $1000.00 from your NIS savings, you are only entitled to a $1800.00 grant which decreases by every dollar earned elsewhere over the $1000.00. This is absurd, citizens should be actively encouraged to provide for their retirement not penalised for doing so.

The fact that the government has chosen to call the pension a grant is to give the impression that senior citizens are being given a handout at the discretion of their masters. This too is absurd, most, if not all senior citizens have contributed in one way or another to the growth and development of this nation. As citizens we are all entitled to benefit from the resources that exist here naturally and civility dictates that our senior citizens are looked after.

NIS pensions should not be classed as income to measure the level of grant to be received, nor should benefits from any other contributory pension for that matter. People who opt to contribute to pensions have denied themselves income during their working years so that they would be able to enjoy retirement and not be a burden to the State or their relatives during those years.

It is also noted that citizens who managed to put aside some savings during their working years are denied access to these grants. This is yet another example of citizens being penalised for doing the right thing.

A national pension should be available to every citizen as of right. Imagine you could serve two terms as an unproductive, sometimes dishonest Member of Parliament and qualify for massive State pension benefits as a result, yet citizens who spend their entire years doing the right thing are denied the much smaller benefits. Where is the justice in that?

All Position Statements