December 4, 2013

Dear Sir,

An article related to the Pension Fund, implied that anyone 37 years and younger, may not receive a government pension, as the Pension Fund is unsustainable and will not be able to support its future financial obligations.

The benefits, currently enjoyed by retirees, and future benefits, expected by the baby boomer crowd, could be underfunded by approximately $2 billion.

The Sage Commission brought this to the public’s attention. This is very alarming and should be of grave concern to those that will be affected.

As a parent of children currently paying into the government’s Social Insurance Plan, and who are under the age of 37 years, does this mean they will not receive a pension when they reach the age of 65 years?

What can our current leaders do to ensure monies will be available to future generations? Will people currently enjoying pensions have to receive cuts in their pensions so that at least they (future generations) will get something?

We read about top civil servants receiving golden handshakes, sometimes as high as $200,000, and pensions of $8,000 per month. Can this continue on forever?

Bermuda’s economy is in free fall, something which could have been avoided had our finances been better managed. When some were pleading for more fiscal responsibility, our leaders were spending like drunken sailors, resulting in us receiving a huge debt to burden.

We now rely on borrowed funds to make ends meet. We should have been saving for the rainy day.

Well, the rain is now pouring down and there seems no end to when it will stop. The current government will get the blame for introducing unpopular and hard to swallow initiatives, but we have a good idea who caused the mess that we find ourselves in.

Changer