UNC cries foul over NIS 'bankruptcy'

Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh has warned the population against believing the words of the Prime Minister and accused him of consistently telling untruths.

At the UNC’s "Budget Facts" virtual meeting on Monday night, Indarsingh addressed issues related to the National Insurance Board (NIB).

He accused the government of dismissing the concern raised by the NIB some years ago, when it warned of a depleting fund if particular recommendations were not implemented.

At a joint select committee (JSC) meeting in 2017, NIB executive director Niala Persad-Poliah said it continued to pay to pay out more benefits than contributions received.

Indarsingh said, “The national budget was a fiscal assault and battery on the people, and it has failed to do anything...

“For five years the PNM did absolutely nothing to address the concerns raised and, in fact, their noses were in the air, removing taxes for the yachting industry, giving golf courses a makeover, giving loans to toilet-paper factories and facilitating their friends and financiers.”

Indarsingh accused Dr Rowley of dishonesty and irresponsibility with the funds in the National Insurance Scheme (NIS).

He said, “The PM has to be brass-faced to come to tell the country that the fund is close to bankruptcy. (It is) because of their dishonesty, irresponsibility, elitist and intellectually bankrupt approach as it relates to dealing with the NIS.

“The government promised job creation, diversification and economic growth, but the reality and the facts are, (the) unemployment figures pushed (their) way to over 100,000 with the onset of covid19. Workers are no longer contributing to the fund and also small and medium business were not contributing.”

Indarsingh warned that the worker population would ultimately pay for the inaction of the PNM.

Finance Minister Colm Imbert, in his budget presentation on October 5, acknowledged that NIS payout of benefits had surpassed contributions. He said a serious review was needed and proposed to raise the retirement age from 60 to 65 over time.

Indarsingh called on Imbert to explain properly to the population the shortfalls of raising the retirement age.

“Tell us if the government will freeze the national insurance pension at $3,000 or implementations on access to the pension.”