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The President of IMANI Ghana, Franklin Cudjoe is of the view that it would rather be beneficial for Ghanaians to invest in livestock than to contribute to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).

“In this country, if you put aside your Gh¢50 that you contribute to SSNIT as an average contributor and you use it to buy livestock, I’m sure it will be much more beneficial to you than to put it into that scheme,” he said.

SSNIT has denied media reports that the government owes it Ghc8 billion with the explanation that the government at every point in time owes the scheme but it pays, no matter how long it takes.

The institution further dismissed reports that the 2008 Pensions Act was amended because the government was desperate to save the scheme from collapse following years of “abuse by successive governments, who have treated the scheme in most cases, as a slush fund, which they resort to with careless abandon anytime the government of the day was cash strapped.”

Mr. Cudjoe who has over the years been criticizing the operations of SSNIT, lamented on the Citi Breakfast Show over the financial management skills of SSNIT saying, Ghanaians are better off investing their funds elsewhere.

“I don’t understand why somebody will tell you that the government owes them Ghc8 billion and another officer comes to tell you it’s not GH¢8 billion but I can’t give you the figure,” he fumed.

“Would you therefore believe anything that institution tells you?” he asked; adding that he has nothing “personal against SSNIT but all I am saying is that in far seeing countries such as Nigeria, pension reforms have given them a lot more.”

The IMANI boss observed that SSNIT does not respected its clientele and has not been able to give proper account of whatever investments they have made and “we are saddled with an institution that does not, does not give any credible statement to its own people.”

Cudjoe revealed that the government and SSNIT are back to “square one” with the pension reforms they started.

He questioned why “SSNIT should be the same person now paying out sums to pensioners when that should be taken care of by the second tier and third tier corporate trust?”

He further expressed worry that SSNIT is able to get away with a lot of improprieties.