NSSA says does not have a stake in Metropolitan Bank

Published: 26 February 2014

NSSA has denied having invested in struggling Metropolitan Bank.

Responding to questions by the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee earlier this week, NSSA general manager James Matiza said the pension scheme authority had not invested in Metropolitan Bank.

"We have only placed deposits with it for on-lending, part of which was money that NSSA's parent ministry had requested it should make available for loans to local authorities to help prevent an outbreak of diseases such as cholera and typhoid," said Matiza.

He said all of the $25 million deposited with the bank was secured and had been recovered.

Meanwhile, NSSA has expressed confidence that it will regain its land that was repossessed by several local authorities. The local authorities had repossessed the land on the basis that NSSA had not developed housing stands within the prescribed time period.

Matiza said they had a 10-year plan for development of housing on these sites, beginning in Mutare.

He added that the project had stalled because "some local authorities such as Mutare had been unable to install the off-site water and sewerage infrastructure essential for site development".

Matiza said when Mutare had been unable to provide the off-site infrastructure NSSA had to move to the next town on the list, which was Marondera, where NSSA has serviced 669 residential stands and built 204 houses.

So far NSSA has regained land in Masvingo, where it was planned to service 683 high density stands.

NSSA is basing its confidence on that the fact that it has received assurance from the Ministry of Local Government over regaining the repossessed stands. However, in some cases NSSA said it was taking legal recourse.
- bh24

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