The new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Dr. Michael Akabogu has disclosed that the new management of the fund is ready to deliver on its mandate and it is time it’s allowed to work instead of being encumbered by negative publicity.
Akabogu said as someone that has been with the fund over the years under various designations before the new appointment, he and the new board know the issues plaguing the fund and are ready to reposition it to be what it was set up to be.
He said this at a media parley held in Abuja, where it was stated that since the inception of the fund, over 52,000 claims have been paid, among which is a beneficiary that collects N1.5 million every month, which will continue till 2034 when the last child of the deceased worker will be 21 years old.
On his appointment, he said it came at a time when the Fund is undergoing various levels of restructuring based on various past challenges and he calls on all staff to give their all in attempts to change the negative narratives around it.
Akabogu said under the new dispensation, while the focus will be on fulfilling the core mandate of the fund and restore confidence in their processes and dignity of the fund, the board would aim to create pathways to reward excellent and outstanding service while maintaining an utmost commitment to staff welfare.
Other key objectives will be to reposition the public perception of the fund, increase the productivity of every department of the fund and use quantifiable metrics to measure its performance in the weeks and months ahead and improve on and ensure prompt payments of claims and compensations to give value for money to all the contributors in their Employee Compensation Act (ECA) scheme.
He also promised to make the fund a conducive and a great place to work for the workers.
The MD said registered employers on the scheme as of June 2021 stood at 117,163, while registered employees are 7,110,905 for the same period and they are looking forward to registering more employers and employees while solving the issues militating against the smooth running of the social insurance fund.
Mrs. Ijeoma Okoronkwo, General Manager, SERVICOM and Board Secretary NSITF, said that the causes of the negative STORIES about the fund ORIGINATED FROM previous previous management that are being Prosecuted across the courts and other enforcement agencies and want Nigerians to allow the new management to revamp the fund.
She said the new board had charted a new ourselves and is open to various innovative ways to move the fund forward. Very soon, Nigerians will be proud of the fund, she added.
It should be recalled that the NSITF was established via Act No. 73 of 1993 as a successor of the defunct National Provident Fund (NPF) which had been in operation since 1961. The NPF was mainly a saving scheme with an equal amount of contributions drawn from both the employer and employees.
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