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Investigations Editor

The National Social Security Authority (NSSA) board members reportedly flew to Kenya on a week-long training workshop that could have been held locally and save foreign currency, with the trip now seen as a holiday.

This happened at a time pensioners were wallowing in poverty.

NSSA on Monday sent general manager Mr Arthur Manase on leave to allow internal and external investigations into corruption and looting allegations.

Air tickets and hefty allowances were paid for the team to undergo training in Kenya despite the fact that the same company that offered the training course had agents in Zimbabwe who could have done it locally. Sources said NSSA had an option of paying for the service to the same company in local currency if the training workshop was done locally. However, NSSA opted to fly the board members to Kenya.

“It boggles the mind why NSSA chose to fly the board members to Kenya and spend thousands of US dollars on a workshop that could have been held here without paying airfares.

“It also raises questions on what sort of training the non-executive directors required in Kenya. Training workshops are usually done for employees who are involved in the day-to-day operations of an entity,” said a source that preferred anonymity.

Investigations are also underway to establish if there is any truth in allegations of impaired recruitment at NSSA where the top managers are being accused of corruptly recruiting their cronies.

The laid down recruitment procedure, according to sources, was not followed when some top managers’ cronies were recruited.

Also under investigation are allegations of opaque investments where asset management companies were hand-picked without due process. Many of the asset management firms are directly or indirectly linked to some officers at NSSA.

Mr Manase, who is now on leave until the investigation is complete, allegedly received a US$750 000 housing loan, but continued to draw US$2 500 monthly in housing allowance to service the loan despite the fact that he already owns a home.

In a notice on Monday, NSSA chairman Dr Percy Toriro said the challenges were multi-layered and could be attributable to a variety of factors.

“Different State entities, including the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, have been seized with the issues. The board has also been seized with the issues. The board has also been conducting its own investigations into the allegations,” he said.

Recently, President Mnangagwa expressed displeasure over the rot at NSSA, just as it appeared the authority had overcome corruption-related challenges from its recent past, as the number of workers contributing subscriptions at the Authority was ballooning, a sign that the economy was thriving.