The Senate yesterday endorsed a 10-year jail term for anybody convicted of stealing or misappropriating pension funds.
It also stipulates N10 million fine to be paid by any pension fund administrator which fails to meet its obligations to contributors.
Convicted offenders would be made to forfeit the assets they acquired with the funds, the Senate proposed in a Bill to punish acts of malfeasance in pension funds.
The Bill proposes that each of the directors of a pension firm would pay N5 million fine, if found complicit.
This followed the consideration and adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service on Pension Reform Act Cap P4, LFN 2011 (Repeal and re-enactment) Bill 2014.”
The Bill, which was read the third time and passed, also accommodates employees of private firms in the contributory pension scheme.
The passage of the Bill automatically repealed the Pension Reform Act 2004, thereby making it possible for every person who worked in either the public service of the federation, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), states or local governments and the private the sector, receive pension benefits as and when due.
The scheme covers private organisations with at least three or more employees.
The lawmakers, after an exhaustive debate on the Bill at its committee of the whole house, voted for its passage into law.
They urged President Goodluck Jonathan to assent to it as soon as possible.
The Bill, among others punishments, prescribes a 10-year jail term for anyone who misappropriates pension funds, besides refunding three times the amount embezzled by him or her.
It also stipulates that whoever attempts to misappropriate the fund, on conviction, would be liable to the same punishment for the full offence under the Act.
It adds that all the funds received as penalty by the Pension Commission would be paid into the Pension Protection Fund whose establishment was provided for under Section 82 of the Act.
Besides the payment of fines and serving jail terms, the Act also mandates anyone who misappropriates pension funds to forfeit to the Federal Government any property, asset or fund with accrued interest on the stolen money.
The Act reads: “Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, the commission may, in addition to the penalties stipulated under this Act, impose additional sanctions on the board, any director, management, manger or officer of a pension fund administrator or pension fund custodian that violates any of the provisions of this Act.”
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service, Aloysius Etok, who addressed reporters after the session, explained that only persons with 15 years’ cognate experience would henceforth be appointed the Director-General of the Pension Commission.
Etok said: “When the committee report got to the chamber on the first day of presentation of the report, the committee’s recommendation of a fit and proper person was rejected and 15 years of post-qualification was adopted.
“So, the post-qualification experience for the one who would be the DG of PENCOM is 15 years.
“In Nigeria, professional pension administration would be about 10. We are talking about cognate experience and not post-qualification experience.
“It’s because if you are talking about post-qualification experience, what about somebody who has 30 years’ post-qualification experience with two years cognate pension experience’? Is he better than someone with 10 years’ cognate experience in pension administration?
“So, having realised that we have slightly below 10 years’ professional pension administration experience possessed by anybody in this country, we decided that somebody might have had five years somewhere else and then have additional 10 years’ cognate experience in professional pension management. That would be a fit and proper person to serve as DG.
“So, the current situation as contained and accepted is 15 years post qualification experience for the post of DG PENCOM.”
