Pensioners want KPA trustees off assets

Pensioners want the High Court to stop registered trustees of the Kenya Ports Authority Pension Scheme (KPAPS) from transferring management of its assets worth millions of shillings to real estate agents.

More than 150 members from Mombasa and Nairobi filed a suit before Justice PJ Otieno seeking orders stopping the trustees from transferring the rental houses to real estate agents over fear of hike in rent and eviction.

The registered trustees issued a notice to members informing them that all pension houses have been placed under management of property managers as from January 1, 2019.

Yesterday, the pensioners through their lawyer Mark Omollo, said the trustees acted in breach of the Trust Deed and Regulations of the KPAPS.

“This move by the trustees is a plot to increase rent, dispose of the properties and kick the members out of the premises despite their continued contributions to the scheme,” said Omollo.

The pensioners want Justice Otieno to stop the trustees from alienating, disposing and transferring management of the properties pending reference of the matter to arbitration in terms of the Trust Deed and Regulation of the KPAPS.

Omollo said they risk losing their pension houses and suffer irreparable losses as they are likely to be evicted from the properties.

“The trustees are in breach of their duty to act in good faith and for the benefit of the pension scheme members. They have sold and disposed of several assets and are in the process of making further disposals unlawfully,” said Omollo.

He said that the notice issued by the trustees require the pensioners to formalise their tenancy arrangement with the new management or give vacant possession.

The pensioners say the trustees did not inform or consult them before the management of the property was transferred to private property managers and further failed to provide full details of assets owned, disposed of or likely to be sold.

“We are aware that the trustees through the property managers want to increase rent for the houses. The capricious rent increment is actuated by malice and a back door tactic to kick out defaulting tenants,” said Omollo.

The pensioners want to know why the trustees outsourced property managers yet there are plans underway to sell the pension houses to members.

Omollo said the check-off system that has been in use where the employer used to remit money directly to the pension scheme was effective with no collection fees involved with nil default rate. 

“This new system of collecting rent through property managers is costly since the property managers will demand commission and the rate of defaulters will increase. There is no comparative advantage to assume the new management structure,” he said.

The matter will be heard on July 10.