The Trustees of the Public Pensioners Forum (PPF) have faulted the government for the continued delay in clearing outstanding gratuity claims dating back to 2021.

According to PPF board chairperson, Dyson Mutipe, only 50% of the gratuities have been paid so far.

“We were very optimistic that our grievances would be addressed before the Tripartite Elections in September this year, but with just one month to go before polling day, we are no longer sure this will happen,” said Mutipe.

He added that the forum has repeatedly presented its grievances and proposed solutions to the government, but the responses have been “too slow and inadequate.”

Mutipe further said pensioners who retired between 2023 and 2025 remain unpaid, despite previous pleas to the Minister of Finance Simplex Chithyola Banda to increase the pension allocation in the 2025/26 National Budget so that all outstanding gratuities from 2021 to 2024 could be settled once and for all.