SSNIT wages war on defunct but indebted establishments

The Cape Coast Branch of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) has threatened to publish the names of some 247 purported defunct establishments that defaulted in the payment of their employee’s contribution, if they fail to pay the debts as soon as practicable.

The Branch Manager, Mr. Alex Appiah disclosed to the Ghana News Agency in an interview that, the organizations, some of which defaulted payment since 1999, owed a total amount of GH¢211,672.78 as of the last check in January this year.

He indicated that when the branch intensified its efforts to retrieve the debts in February this year, it discovered that some of them were not defunct as they claimed, adding that “we will publish their names since they claim they are defunct”.

He said through vigilance, the branch was able to locate some of the defaulters who made payment while others did not, adding that, the branch would go all out this March and locate more of them to retrieve amounts owed.

Mr. Appiah also disclosed that a total of 31 active establishments, currently owed a total amount of GH¢124,615.24 and while some of them had come forward to negotiate terms of payments, others were adamant.

He said the trust had instituted legal action against the establishments which were adamant to pay and would not relent in ensuring that they paid.

He also called on the workforce to alert the trusts when they detect their employers are not paying their SSNIT contributions so it would take prompt and necessary action against such organizations.

He said according to Section 83(1d) of the National Pensions Act 766, every SSNIT paying organization was mandated to submit a report on their employees and their salaries to the trust, but currently 48 organizations had not submitted up to December 2014 reports.

He said failure to submit such reports was an offence liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 500 penalty units or to a term of imprisonment not less than five years and therefore entreated all organisation to submit their report before the law caught up with them.