TrustFund asset hits N300bn, aspires to be market maker

Management of TrustFund Pensions Limited on Wednesday disclosed that it had generated assets in excess of N300 billion within 10 years of operations.

Helen Da-Souza, TrustFund managing director/CEO, gave the hint at the 10-year anniversary lecture: ‘Sustaining the contributory pension scheme’ held in Abuja.

Da-Souza expressed delight over the success recorded so far, disclosed that 8,000 registered contributors out of the 600,000 contributors now earn monthly pensions from the company as pensioners.

“We are proud because despite the initial critical operational setback, the company still found a place in the top league of the PFAs.

“We could not have done any less because the vision of the company is to be the leader and market maker or funds management in the financial services industry.

“Not only have we pursued this vision vigorously, we have also worked hard towards achieving the company’s mission, which is to create future value for the economically active workforce to assure a quality standard of living upon retirement,” Da-Souza stated.

To effectively sustain the contributory pension scheme, she stressed the need for the players in the industry to look inwards at some critical areas for further improvement especially in the area of prompt remittance of pension contributions by employers particularly the private sector.

The TrustFund chief, who decried the gross abuse of the existing framework of moral suasion and escalation to PenCom, urged that “legal and punitive measures, in line with the pension reform Act of 2004, should be activated.

“A good number of employers have been running foul of the pension reform Act, (PTA 2014) in terms of prompt and regular remittances of pension contributions in favour of their employees registered with PFAs.

“These customers are short changed and denied their investment incomes that should have accrued to them had their pension deductions been remitted as and when due.  On the other hand, some employers remit only the employees’ portion thereby creating loss of revenue to both their employees and the industry operators.”

While stressing the need for all the 36 states of the federation and Local Governments to join the contributory pension scheme, Da-Souza emphasised the need to address various challenges bedevilling the public sector pension scheme.

On his part, Ayuba Wabba, president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) applauded the efforts of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo towards the actualization of the contributory pension scheme, especially into the public sector.

While calling for full enforcement of the Pension Reform Act, Wabba lamented that “the current fate of state’s civil servants who are owed several months of pension arrears, some up to 12 months and more, underscores the urgent necessity to bring this category of public servants on board the scheme.”