Hope For Kenyan Workers To Save And Retire In Dignity As The Court Of Appeal Reinstates The NSSF Act

The Background

Court of Appeal has rendered a landmark ruling that will see the ordinary worker retire and get benefits that befit them.

The ruling that was rendered on the 3rd of February gives hope and purpose for push for better savings.

The ruling creates the right environment to build upon the needed foundation to push this country towards the essence and culture of saving that is critical to our survival. Let me paint for you a story from data that was collected by Sokodirectory.com during December. The publishing media house found very interesting data: The average Kenyan Middle-Class Person has an average of 7 Mobile Loans and at least 1 bank loan and 1 Sacco Loan.

Middle Class is one illness away from Acute Poverty. Not to mention, they have no savings at all. Remember this is the middle class. So, what about the ordinary, majority of us, who have no access to these mobile loan applications and have zero platforms for sustainable platforms for savings? Where do we run to?

The Zulu have a saying “Umuthi ugotshwa usemanzi” which translates to “a tree is bent while it is still wet”. The meaning of this proverb is that wisdom and behavioral influences are instilled when a person is still young. This means we must decide now and act fast while we can bend our habits into success when it comes to our saving behavior.

I am with the President when he said that we must increase what we save so that we can retire with something tangible in our pockets. If we want to live the same lifestyle when we retire or better, we must sacrifice today.

A better tomorrow means we work hard, smart, and together today. Some of the biggest challenges that Kenyans face when it comes to saving money for a rainy day include:

1. Low income: Many Kenyans earn low wages, making it difficult to save money regularly.
2. High cost of living: The cost of living in Kenya is high, leaving little room for saving.
3. Unemployment: High unemployment rates result in many people not having a steady source of income, making it difficult to save.
4. Inflation: Inflation can erode the value of savings, making it difficult to build up a rainy-day fund.
5. Debt: High levels of personal debt can make it difficult to save money, as a significant portion of income goes towards debt repayment.
6. Lack of financial literacy: Many Kenyans lack the financial knowledge and understanding necessary to make informed decisions about saving and investing.
7. Poor financial planning: Many people lack a clear plan for their finances, making it difficult to set aside money for a rainy day.

The NSSF ACT of 2013 was designed and enacted to address the above challenges and ensure that workers would retire with dignity. The Employment and Labor Relations Court deemed the Act unconstitutional and put the whole industry in jeopardy. The National Social Security Fund Board of Trustees appealed the case against the Kenya Tea Growers Association and 14 others and they won meaning the worker has won.

If we implement what needs to be done, the current administration of NSSF will return the dignity that we deserve in our retirement.

The Ruling In Context;

The Court of Appeal ruled that if proceedings are conducted by a court without jurisdiction, they are nullity, citing the precedence set by Desai v Warsaw (1967) EA 351.

The Court reiterated that any award or judgment and or orders arising from such proceedings of a court acting without jurisdiction are also a nullity. In the Court of Appeal’s wisdom, they found that the judgment of the ELRC was a nullity in total.

The Court of Appeal has concluded that the ELRC bench lacked jurisdiction, the only order which commends itself in the circumstances of this case was to allow the appellant’s appeal which they did and, in