LIVINGSTONE MARUFU
A civil servants umbrella body has warned the Public Service Commission (PSC) against interfering in the affairs of the Premier Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) as it should be governed by its members and constitution.
The warning by the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCPSTU) comes after PSC secretary Jonathan Wutaunashe made a number of allegations condemning what he calls “rot” at PSMAS while committing to fix the same so that PSMAS returns to its original purpose for which it was formed by the workers many years ago.
But ZCPSTU told PSC to stop interfering with PSMAS.
“The PSC must keep its hands off PSMAS which by Ambassador Wutaunashe’s own admission is a workers’ project, a mutual society that is governed by its own members. Any issues to do with malfeasances and misgovernance can be addressed through the Society’s own constitution and not by an external party,” ZCPSTU said.
Trade unions said the PSC claims to have remitted over ZWL$6bn to PSMAS last year and ZWL$637m currently but Wutaunashe forgets to tell the nation that the real insurance cover for each individual PSMAS member is only US$10 at the auction rate of which the employer contributes 80% and the employee 20%.
Dependants of the same members are covered to the tune ZWL$45 per member.
The ZWL$637m monthly remittance falls far short of a PSMAS claims bill of ZWL$1.5bn.
“The co-payments which the Ambassador [Wutaunashe] moans about are the result of a sub- economic subscription which ignores health inflation and the hyper-inflation in the economy and the parallel market.
“The medical cover for each PSMAS member is just about ZWL$8000 per year. It is as good as having no medical insurance at all,” the ZCPSTU said.
“By demanding that PSMAS should not make any investments and rather focus only on medical insurance, the PSC is doing the bidding for private medical health practitioners who are notorious for extortionately high tariffs and a propensity to reject the PSMAS card whenever it suits them. It amounts to throwing our members to the mercy of health industry cartels,” ZCPSTU said.
It warned that the PSC should keep its hands off PSMI which is a private company registered under the Companies Act and which, out of its own choice, has been subsidising PSMAS members.
The PSC in its 2019-2025 Strategic Plan, set itself a goal to either demutualise or capacitate PSMAS but the trade unions questioned the reason behind the government organ’s motive on a mutual society owned by its members.
The ZCPSTU accused PSC of using the Regulator of Medical Aid Societies to illegally stop the PSMAS AGM then scheduled for June 24 citing concerns with governance and service delivery.
“The PSC has been using its so- called “powerful” board appointees to distabilise the society in order to push its agenda to control the society and demutualise it. The PSC has been in overdrive to reverse all PSMAS AGM resolutions in a wish to return to the Dube-era and its “Salary-gate” which nearly brought the Society to its knees. It’s a clear case of “ it’s our time to eat.”
“The PSC has consistently refused to review the PSMAS subscription to economic levels in order to justify their scheme to take over the society. When a leopard wants to eat its children, it accuses them of smelling like goats.”
ZCPSTU council demands that the government should forthwith pay a monthly medical allowance for all its employees( not only PSMAS members) ,who can then shop for a medical insurer of their choice.
It said PSMAS should go ahead to reconvene its annual general meeting without hindrance from the PSC or any external party.
The PSC was warned to desist from speaking to the public on behalf of workers on any condition of service issue unless there is consultation.
ZCPSTU said the government should convene an urgent National Joint Negotiation Committee to resolve the PSMAS issue and stop the suffering of members who are bearing the brunt of co-payments.
