EDITOR, The Tribune
When I first joined the Royal Bahamas Police Force Fire Department, back on June of 1978 my salary then was around $700.00 per month. Fast tracking to September 3rd, 2003, retired from active law enforcement service.
The pension now in June of 2019, with all of the taxes and exorbitant prices in the food stores are not fair to people like me, living on a pension of $1,250.00 (without deductions)...and obtained after twenty-five years of unbroken service. And my rent is $540.00 per month. My food bill roughly around $350.00 and even this amount, very many items having nutritional value, after considering the price, I was forced to place them back onto the shelves.
This amounts to inflation and the meaning of which is simply, an economic process in which prices increase, so that money becomes less valuable...So the question is under whose umbrella are the prices of goods and services attributed? The Central Bank of The Bahamas, or The Price Control Unit? God help me, if I ever needed medical surgery, etc. Something must be done for retirees, public servants of the government.
Just recently, I offered for a security job and was told ‘Pops, where are you going, but-you-looking for work...’we do not hire old people, furthermore, what can you do as an old man? I am only a little over 60 years? ‘That’s way too old’. Okay, I said. I think that under the Rt Honorable Hubert A Ingraham-Prime Minister, Commonwealth of The Bahamas (at-the-time, we had four increases to pensions).
God knows how we would have fared, had he not considered the plight of these Bahamian men and women that have served their country, actually we were the ones standing in the gaps...on the line protecting/sacrificing their lives, as they served their Countrymen, while many now were in primary schools, but what have we received in the form of thanks? Has the nation shown gratitude? We don’t think so.
Fast forwarding and if the Good Lord was to delay His coming, many of you now, that we are looking to in order to fill this gap and give us pensioners what we deserved. And finally, to the powers that be, we suspect, and it is very possible that many of you are likely to find yourselves being counted among the old...what goes around, does certainly come back around, quo. For all the Pensioners.
FRANK GILBERT
Nassau,
December 6, 2019.
Comments
DonAnthony 4 years, 4 months ago
Your pension amounts to $15,000 per year and quite frankly that is much higher than I expected. I think the problem here is that many Bahamians expect to be able to live comfortably solely on their pension, this clearly is unrealistic. With the continual increase in the cost of living each year it is becoming even more so.
In 25 years of public service you were unable to amass any personal savings for your golden years? Clearly you were unable to purchase a home which would have alleviated the need to rent. Bahamians need to prepare and SAVE for their retirement. Preferably owning their own home (mortgage free) and reducing expenses as much as possible. I have planned for my retirement with the expectation that I will receive nothing from NIB or the government and will have to self fund all my living expenses.
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 4 months ago
If the bottom drops out of the economy, if the dollar devalues, if the US economy tanks, your planning will be for naught. There are also many persons who cannot afford a house. You mentioned your parentS with an "S", I assume then living expenses were carried by 2 salaries or a homemaker allowed the other spouse to devote more time to work. There are many single elderly people.
The response cannot be its all your fault. It doesnt wifk fir yiung unedycated or tgd dkderly underfunded. I'm aghast that more people are not outraged at the nation policy of age discrimination in this country. You too will get old one day and the society that you carefully planned for where eggs are $5-7 may not exist, when you get there eggs may be $20. a piece of bread could buy a bag of gold
realitycheck242 4 years, 4 months ago
You are right, Bahamians simply need to learn to educate themselves about the various investment opportunities that are available at the local brokerage houses. Start saving early, like in their 20s. Transition to investing ASAP, Lead a discipline financial life. Learn about mutual funds and branch into buying dividend paying shares. An individual who learns the secrets on investing should not seek to be popular. Focus on their financial goals by making sacrifices and stick to their plan. The results will be rewarding. I was able to retire at 45 after working in a large corporation for 20yrs by keeping the Banks off my back with their predatory lending practices. That is what is enslaving many Bahamians who at the end of the day are forced to rely on Government pension.
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 4 months ago
OMG.."brokerage" house? Do they have options, no pun intended, for people with 30 dollars left at week's end for groceries? It's like a portion of this society has no clue what poverty is and how difficult it is to break that cycle, even if you recognize education as the way.
ok, here's my solution let's create a you wasted your youth Poor House, it should have a 30 ft wall so no one could climb over...the 40 year olds may try to make a run for it. With the wall we won't have to be reminded that there are serious issues in our community, not all self generated. How many hard working people "with plans" lost everything after the financial crash? Back to the you too old and its your fault Poor House..put everyone in there on there 45th birthday if they haven't saved enough for their retirement, that will save us from having to be reminded that they exist 10 years from now with letters like the above. As we go about in society and to our cocktail parties, we will only see wealthy elderly people and working persons under 30. That should solve the problem.
DonAnthony 4 years, 4 months ago
You are 100% right. I retired in my early 40s, simply opened a brokerage account in my early 20s saved like crazy and invested well. It takes discipline, sacrifice and a bit of luck but too many Bahamians think it is not possible. I am living proof it is. This writer saved nothing, retired early and expected his government pension would cover all, totally unrealistic.
Sickened 4 years, 4 months ago
People must plan to retire with a roof over their head - i.e. a house/apartment with no mortgage. Granted maintaining a property can be expensive but it should be as expensive as renting.
Of course owning your own home isn't easy but my parents who started off with nothing were able to do it along with all of their friends who also started with nothing. Being financially responsible is key to a comfortable retirement. This means only having kids you can afford and (it irks me to say) getting married - as the additional income will certainly help.
Dawes 4 years, 4 months ago
Whilst i understand what the writer is saying, if he is only a little over 60 now and retired in 2003 over 16 years ago, how can he think he should get a larger pension. A pension should be based on what you contributed over the years, so less work means less in the pot. I'll be lucky to retire when i'm 70 at this rate
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 4 months ago
I don't think he's saying he deserves more, he's begging Minnis to address the inflation bought on by Turnquest and Johnson with zero thought and then heartily sanctioned by 35 FNM parliamentarians. Turnquest and Johnson may both be nice men, I dont know them, but they do not have the intellectual capacity or creativity to lead the country out of the current financial divide.
60 is not too old to work. What is wrong with us and this ageism???? Why are we so quick to throw people away? I had professors in college who were over 70. And these guys from what I heard were sought after by the govt for their expertise and experience
Dawes 4 years, 4 months ago
Sorry on my 60 i meant if he is a little over 60 now and retired in 2003 then he was in his late 40s when he retired which seems very young.
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