Department of Pensions instructed to systemize prompt payment of pensions

The Sectoral Oversight Committee on An Open and Accountable Government has instructed the Department of Pensions to systemize the mechanism of prompt payment of pensions and inform the public regarding the relevant process.

Accordingly, the Chair of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on An Open & Accountable Government, Jagath Kumara Sumithraarachchi has instructed the Department of Pensions to take steps to promptly pay the pensions due to the employees retiring from the government service in Sri Lanka and to have the public informed about the same for that purpose.

He has emphasized that the public are inconvenienced due to the long time taken to receive the pension and said that this is a concern that has been going on for a long time and that complaints pertaining to the said concern are received frequently.

The said concerns have also been discussed when the Department of Pensions was called before the Sectoral Oversight Committee on An Open & Accountable Government. The Committee met in Parliament recently under the chairmanship of MP Jagath Kumara Sumithraarachchi.

There, the officials have pointed out that it is possible to pay the pension within one month of receiving a properly completed pension application. They have also mentioned that many problems arise due to the application form not being completed properly.

The Members mentioned that there is a great frustration among the public regarding the Department of Pensions due to the lack of a proper system to acquire information about their pension, the Parliamentary Communications Department said.

Therefore, the MPs have stated that this system should be set up in such a way that services can be easily provided to the people by using modern technology.

The councilors have further suggested to appointing a graduate officer to each divisional secretariat to deal with pension.

The Committee Members have proposed that it is appropriate to call the pensioners’ associations related to the respective districts before the Committee and discuss their problems.

Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Mohomad Muzammil, Gunathilaka Rajapaksha, M. Rameshwaran, Kumarasiri Rathnayaka, and Kapila Athukorala were present at the relevant Committee meeting, according to the Parliamentary Communications Department.