High Court orders DP Shapriya to pay NSSF

DAR ES SALAAM: THE High Court, Dar es Salaam Sub-Registry, has ordered DP Shapriya and Company Limited to pay over 3.0bn/- to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) for outstanding statutory contributions and accumulated penalties from 2011 to 2023.

Judge Hussein Mtembwa gave the order after granting a summary judgment sought by the Attorney General and the Board of Trustees of NSSF, against the engineering and construction service provider company, the defendant.

The judge noted that the defendant was in breach of its statutory obligations and has defaulted remittance of members’ statutory contributions amounting to 1,143,536,904/- being the outstanding principal members’ contributions.

According to him, the amount covers between January 2011 and January 2023 with accumulated penalties amounting to 1,926,458,918/56, which shall continue to accrue as long as the amount stands unpaid.

“The defendant to be ordered to pay the sum of 3,060,995,822/56 being un-remitted members’ contributions plus accumulated penalties payable to the Plaintiffs by the Defendant,” the judge declared.

A summary judgment allows a court to rule in favour of one party without a full trial when the facts are clear and undisputed. In this case, the judge reviewed the pleadings and other court documents and determined that the plaintiffs were entitled to win as a matter of law.

The court’s findings reveal that DP Shapriya, a registered contributing employer with the NSSF, is legally required to remit both its own and its employees’ contributions each month. Employers are expected to contribute 10 per cent of employees’ wages, with an additional 10 per cent deducted from employees, for a total contribution of 20 per cent.

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Despite these legal obligations, the company failed to make timely contributions in several instances, while in other months it delayed remittance, resulting in penalties.

The defendant’s failure to comply with the law not only violated statutory requirements but also deprived employees of their rightful pension benefits, which they depend on when retiring, leaving the scheme, or in the event of death.

Efforts by NSSF to recover the unpaid contributions and penalties through repeated demands were unsuccessful, prompting the plaintiffs to seek legal action.