By George K. Momo
MONROVIA, Sept. 29 (LINA) – The Civil Service Agency (CSA), in collaboration with the National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP), has commenced a preliminary pre-retirement exercise in Maryland County aimed at identifying government employees who have reached the statutory retirement age and facilitating their transition to retirement benefits.
The exercise, which is currently ongoing across government ministries, agencies and commissions (MACs) in the county, is part of a broader national effort to sanitize the civil
service payroll and ensure that eligible retirees are accorded the benefits due them under Liberia’s civil service and social security laws.
Mr. Mark M. Sesay, head of the CSA delegation in Maryland speaking in an interview with journalists on Wednesday, September 23, 2024 in Harper pointed out that the initiative is intended to update and verify retirement records at both the county and national levels.
He disclosed that the preliminary exercise will capture government employees who have attained the retirement age of 65-years and above, something he stressed is in line with the Civil Service Standing Order and the NASSCORP Act.
“This is a nationwide process targeting approximately 6,000 government employees who have reached the retirement threshold. We are in Maryland to begin the preliminary verification so that no one is left behind,” he stated.
Mr. Sesay explained that employees identified during the exercise will undergo the necessary administrative procedures before official transition from the CSA payroll to the NASSCORP payroll, a move he said will create an access to their monthly pension and other statutory retirement benefits.
Mr. Sesay disclosed that the exercise will also address long-standing cases involving public employees who were retired during previous administrations but have yet to fully access their benefits due to incomplete documentation, payroll irregularities, or lack of proper enrollment with NASSCORP.
“The government wants to establish accurate records of retirees and ensure that qualified beneficiaries are properly captured within the retirement system. It is about dignity for our senior citizens who served this country,” he said.
He added that the joint CSA-NASSCORP team will be meeting with heads of line ministries and agencies in Maryland, as well as local county authorities, to ensure a transparent and inclusive process.
Meanwhile, some civil servants in the county have welcomed the exercise, describing it as timely, while calling on the CSA to ensure that the process is not politicized and that retirees receive their benefits promptly.
The CSA pre-retirement verification exercise is expected to be extended to other counties in the southeast in the coming weeks as part of the nationwide rollout.