The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has signed an agreement with the ANC Staff Provident Fund compelling the party to settle over R86-million in arrears.
According to the FSCA, the ruling party has failed to meet its obligations on retirement fund contributions towards the staff provident fund, which consists of about 535 members.
The financial watchdog said it has concluded an enforceable undertaking that provides the authority with broad powers aimed at rectifying any breach in the conduct of a regulated entity.
In its undertaking, the FSCA ordered the ANC to pay R10-million towards its provident fund monthly until the arrear contributions have cleared. It has also instructed the party to provide monthly updates on the status of the contribution arrears and “the employer’s adherence to its obligations as per the agreement with the fund”.
The party is also expected to update the members of the fund on the status of the contributions. The FSCA said it is also expecting the governing party to stop deducting retirement contributions from employees.
“[The ANC must] provide monthly confirmation to the FSCA that the employer is not making further deductions from employees’ salaries, if paid, in line with the amended fund rules,” it said.
FSCA commissioner Unathi Kamlana said: “The onus of ensuring that there are no arrear contributions, and to consider appropriate action if there are such arrears, remains on the trustees of a fund.
“Both employers and funds are reminded of the importance of treating their workers and members fairly by honouring their obligations as enshrined in various legislation.”
The FSCA’s order is a revelation that the ailing governing party has not only struggled to pay salaries, but is also deficient in adhering to its provident fund expectations.
Disgruntled ANC staff members have been intermittently protesting and staging go-slows for the past four years. In December 2021, the ANC said it had to dig deep to pay salaries that had been outstanding for over two months.
The party had to raise more than R200-million to settle its debts and pay employees before the end of the year. At the time, the cash-strapped party had a salary bill of over R12-million and it owed R140-million in provident fund debt, recurring PAYE (pay as you earn) tax debt and the Unemployment Insurance Fund.
However, the staffers continued to picket outside the party’s headquarters at Luthili House in January 2022.
Addressing the financial crisis in February, ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said it was considering retrenchments, noting that cutting down on employees was part of the organisation’s redesign plan.
“The NEC [national executive committee] urged the officials to remain seized with the matter of placing the ANC finances on a sound footing. The NEC notes the work being done on a new organisational design for ANC offices that is appropriate to its mission and affordable,” said Mabe at the time.
In July, the party’s financial woes posed an immense threat to its policy conference after employees threatened to disrupt the gathering in Nasrec if salaries were not paid.
It had been revealed by the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union that the ANC was struggling to pay salaries on time.
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