DA pushes for regulatory action over GNT pension scandal

LIMPOPO

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Limpopo has called for urgent regulatory action over the Great North Transport (GNT) pension scandal, which has left former employees without their pension benefits despite years of promises and political assurances.

The DA said it will lodge a formal complaint with the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and the Office of the Pension Funds Adjudicator, and has also called on the Auditor-General of South Africa to investigate the matter.

According to Jacques Smalle, DA Provincial Spokesperson for Limpopo Economic Development, the Environment, and Tourism (LEDET), the failure to pay over employee and employer pension fund contributions constitutes serious legal breaches and amounts to a criminal offense.

“Not only must GNT and its officials be held accountable, but so too must GNT’s Board and Tshitereke Matibe, MEC for LEDET, who could also be held personally liable,” he said.

Smalle indicated that the scandal dates back over 25 years, with a forensic investigation by BDO finding that GNT deducted pension contributions from employees but failed to remit both the employee and employer portions to the pension funds.

The report also found that the GNT Board failed to report this non-compliance as required under the Pension Funds Act, effectively allowing the abuse to continue unchecked.

“What makes this matter truly unconscionable is that it dates back more than 25 years. Recent funding intended to resolve the festering pension crisis, stabilise GNT, and recapitalise the company appears to have been misappropriated. It is as if GNT’s dysfunction and its crises are being deliberately manufactured and sustained to create yet another pot of public money to be looted,” Smalle added.

He said the DA is calling for an independent and public commission of enquiry into the collapse of GNT to uncover how and why this vital public entity was captured, who enabled it, and how to prevent it from happening again.

“Only a transparent enquiry conducted in full public view will uncover the truth and ensure accountability,” Smalle said.

The Limpopo Provincial Government has responded to the pension funds matter in a statement, provided an update on its efforts to resolve the outstanding pension and provident payments owed to former GNT employees.

According to the provincial government, a comprehensive intervention process was initiated in October 2024, resulting in a call for all former employees to submit their claims for processing.

As of the latest verified records, 787 claims have been processed by the liquidator, and 376 files have been transferred to the Fedgroup Unclaimed Benefit Fund.

An additional 214 claims have been processed by Fedgroup, leaving 162 files remaining as unclaimed.

The Limpopo Provincial Government said it has established a Task Team to address all claimants, including the procurement of actuarial services to investigate missing data and quantify potential underpayments.

However, the appointed actuaries, Moremi Actuaries, have reported difficulties in obtaining historical data from financial institutions and the Make It Happen Foundation (MIHAFO).

“We sympathize with the cause of those who still haven’t received their pension payouts, but it would be reckless of government to accede to the demand that R500 million be paid to MIHAFO’s account without supporting data to justify same,” said Premier Dr. Phophi Ramathuba.

The Provincial Government has called on all former GNT employees who have not yet submitted their claims to approach GNT offices directly for assistance.

“The government reiterates its commitment to ensuring that all legitimate claims are settled in a financially responsible manner, backed by evidence-based, procedurally sound, and verifiable calculations,” said the Limpopo Provincial Government in a statement.