LOBAMBA - Questions over the safety of millions of Emalangeni belonging to emaSwati under the Eswatini National Provident Fund (ENPF) took centre stage yesterday as Members of Parliament (MPs) raised the alarm over revelations that the fund’s Board exists but is not functional.
The concerns emerged during proceedings of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), where Principal Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Makhosini Mndawe, admitted that while the ENPF Board had been legally appointed, it is not operating effectively.
The matter was first raised by PAC member and Kubuta MP Masiphula Mamba, who sought clarity on the status of the ENPF Board and progress regarding the long-awaited conversion of the provident fund into a pension scheme.
Mamba noted that the nation was informed that the conversion process was underway through proposed legislation, yet little progress had been seen despite reports that significant resources had already been spent on consultations and lobbying.
He also questioned whether governance challenges within the Board are contributing to declining public confidence in the fund and concerns over non-remittance of contributions.
PAC Chairperson and Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane asked whether emaSwati could still have confidence that their contributions were secure amid reports that the Board is not sitting regularly.
Responding to the concerns, the PS assured the MPs that the proposed conversion is still on track and that this is supported by the fact that the relevant Bill remains before Parliament.
“The conversion of ENPF to a pension fund continues,” said Mndawe, adding that the legislation was still undergoing parliamentary processes.
However, when pressed on whether the Board is operational, the PS admitted that although it was legally appointed through Cabinet processes, it is not functioning as expected.
“The simple answer is that it is not functioning the way that it should or the way that we expect,” he said.
Mndawe explained that the matter had since been escalated to the Prime Minister’s Office for further discussion and promised that feedback would be provided to the PAC once a decision had been reached.
The admission triggered concern among MPs, with committee members questioning how oversight and accountability over contributors’ funds were being maintained under the circumstances.
PAC Deputy Chairperson Manzi Zwane warned that the revelations raised serious concerns about the safety of public funds held by the institution.
“As you have heard members, money belonging to emaSwati is not safe,” Zwane said.
He added that the fact that the Board had been appointed, but is failing to function properly points to weaknesses in governance and financial oversight within the institution.
Meanwhile, the MPs also spoke strongly about findings made by the AG to the effect that deductions of contributions for national provident fund, medical aid and taxes remained unremitted.
In his report, the AG cited Section 14(2) of the Eswatini National Provident Fund Order No. 23 of 1974, which states that a contributing employer shall, for every contribution period after the date when he became a contributing employer, pay into the fund the statutory contribution in respect of each eligible employee employed by him during such period.
It is also stipulated that public entities are required by law (Income Tax Order of 1975 as amended) to remit taxes in accordance with the tax laws.
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