Africa-Press – Namibia. FUNERAL UNDERTAKERS around the country say the Social Security Commission (SSC) owes them more than N$2 million in funeral claims.
“They owe me over N$2 million. I have done over 450 funerals for the past three months without getting any compensation,” Johan Lotter from Angels Funeral Services says.
He says citizens who qualify for an old-age pension grant are normally offered a funeral cover of N$4 500, which he claims from the SSC. Lotter says Hollard used to process these claims until the SSC took over this function last year.
His business is struggling to maintain its stock and cannot supply customers with the tombstones and coffins they want, he says. Lotter says he submitted a claim for N$800 000 to the commission about three weeks ago, but has not received a payout yet.
“They sent us an email saying their system is being upgraded, so the payment would be delayed. They then put out a notice that the system would be upgraded on 23 August, saying we would receive our claims then. We called them after this, and they then said we would receive our money at the end of the month,” he says.
Lotter says these circumstances are killing the industry. Patrick van Wyk, the owner of Akasia Funeral Services, says the commission owes him about N$150 000.
He says he has been paying the
N$4 500 portion towards funerals from his business coffers for the past two months. “. . . if they tell me their systems are not functional and they cannot pay me, I do not know where to go,” he says.
Van Wyk says in the process he is becoming a risk to coffin suppliers and other stakeholders. Mariaan Boshoff, the owner of Northern Quality Tombstones and Funerals services, says Hollard was more efficient in the processing of claims.
“Since the SSC took over, you have to wait at least two or three months to get your money. They owe me money for 111 orders,” she says.
Boshoff says the 111 orders amount to N$449 500, and two other claims amount to more than N$130 000. Boshoff says the SSC has sent her an email saying the money would have reflected earlier this week.
CHAIN REACTION Piet Blaauw, the co-owner of Immanuel Coffins, says: “Now they cannot pay us, and we cannot further supply them with coffins if they cannot pay their bill.
“The problem comes straight to us as the manufacturer and the supplier. We are not talking about N$80 000, we are talking about some owing us around N$1 million.”
Immanuel Coffins is one of the biggest coffin factories in Namibia. Blaauw says if the problem persists, he may be forced to take legal action. “The SSC is creating a big problem for them, myself and families in the future,” he says.
Blaauw says undertakers may not want to take on pensioners’ funerals in future. His wife, Berdine, says undertakers owe the company close to N$4 million.
SSC spokesperson Unomengi Kauapirura says a system migration is currently taking place, which aims to improve service delivery. “We sent out a notice that payment may be delayed until the end of August, because our systems are not working,” she says.
“We are working on fixing those minor problems, and that is why we are not fully back on the air,” she says.
Lotter yesterday said he received communication from the SSC informing undertakers that the system has been restored and that outstanding invoice payments would be released.
