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Johannesburg - The Freedom Front Plus on Monday pledged to prevent the dissolution of a Transnet pension fund.
"Any attempt by Transnet and the state to dissolve the pension fund of the 62 160 former employees will be a human rights abuse of the worst kind and the FF Plus will take every possible step to prevent this," said spokesperson Anton Alberts.
On Sunday, Rapport reported that Transnet was planning to dissolve the pension fund to which it had transferred 65 000 pensioners and then stripped it of its assets.
Lawyers were seeking approval from the High Court in Pretoria to bring a class action against Transnet on behalf of the pensioners.
Alberts said the fund could only be dissolved if legislation was amended, which would need to be discussed by the parliamentary portfolio committee on public enterprises.
The FF Plus would use all possible parliamentary processes to oppose the dissolving of the funds.
"The effect of the dissolving of the funds will be disastrous and all of the 62 160 members and their dependants, who are already impoverished and are living far below the bread line due to the maladministration of the pension funds, will be left without any income."
Rapport quoted Transnet CEO Brian Molefe as saying that the plight of the pensioners did not concern him, because they were "beneficiaries of apartheid".
The pensioners worked for Transnet under apartheid and almost a third of them are reportedly black. According to Alberts, 53% of the pension fund members are white.
He condemned Molefe's comment as "shockingly insensitive and extremely ignorant".
