The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes the decision by the Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana to order an investigation into the Government Pension Administration Agency (GPAA)’s leasing of a non-existent building for nearly R1 billion.

The GPAA administers funds for the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) for the benefit of 1.7 million workers and pensioners. The entity is reported to have awarded the winning bid for leasing its headquarters to a company that does not own or have access to the building. In fact, the building belongs to a JSE-listed company that has no intention to sell or evict its current tenants.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, GPAA has paid more than R200 million towards the refurbishment of said building. This is clearly a crude scheme to siphon off money and makes COSATU very uneasy given the entity’s proximity to workers’ hard earned retirement savings.

COSATU eagerly awaits the GPAA’s appearance before the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration to hear their explanation for this blatant looting. The Federation also calls for the investigation to be expedited and for the wrongdoers to be prosecuted and imprisoned. South Africans are beyond tired of corrupt officials being moved from one department to the next to evade accountability. Corrupt individuals must face the full might of the law.

Issued by COSATU 

Zanele Sabela (COSATU National Spokesperson)
Mobile: 079 287 5788 or 077 600 6639
Email: zaneles@cosatu.org.za