The Kenya Broadcasting corporation KBC is in hot soup after it was involved in a scandal where pension money worth 2.7 billion shillings was deducted from employees’ salaries but has never been remitted to the Retirement Pension Schemes.
The KBC’s employees who presented their grievances before the Employment Court said the National Broadcaster has not remitted the payments to the Pension Schemes for almost a decade even as the money continues to accumulate.
The staff including former employees are now living in fear that they will never receive their money when they retire a situation that could affect their retirement plans and even leave them broke.
According to one of the complainants MS Jane Kiambi, most of the employees affected are of ages 48 and above.
“At Least 70 percent of KBC employees are aged over 48 years and are living in fear of retirement given that they will neither receive pension lump sum nor be eligible for pension income because of the financial damage directly caused by the State broadcaster,” MS Kiambi lamented.
Reports also reveal the KBC pension scheme has been underperforming in terms of ratio to total liabilities where it has fallen to 29.6 percent below the 100 percent required by the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA).
“The actions of KBC have put the scheme in great financial jeopardy. Former employees who worked hoping they would receive payment to sustain them in retirement may be rendered destitute.”
The KBC board says the retired staff are not receiving their pensions worth billions of shillings but the broadcaster says it is unable to settle the dues, of which if compelled to pay, it will go bankrupt.
KBC is also unable to pay the salaries of the current staff according to an affidavit sworn by Mr. Jeremiah Marakia.
However, the board of trustees said KBC will start remitting the deductions from May.