By Abigail Visagie
After serving in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) for three decades, retired Major John Robertson from De Aar in the Northern Cape has finally spoken out against the issues surrounding his pension fund.
He retired at the age of 57, gaining access to early retirement through the Mobility Exit Mechanisms (MEM), a strategy implemented by the Department of Defence to manage and reduce personnel numbers, primarily by facilitating the exit of members aged 50 to 58 who can no longer progress in their careers, thereby rejuvenating the SANDF.
Robertson claims that he has calculated that more than R540,000 has been deducted by SANDF's Chief Master. When he inquired about this significant amount, he was informed that it was the tax claimed from his pension fund. At the time, he did not think it would become a major issue and accepted the explanation.
Robertson officially retired in January 2023 and received his severance pay in March of that year. Initially, everything seemed fine, and he received a third of his pension—already taxed.
He decided to invest this portion of money and also received a monthly allowance from the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF).
“I went to file my tax returns in Belville, Western Cape, during 2023, and a South African Revenue Service (SARS) consultant informed me that I had been overtaxed and was owed R182,000 by SARS,” confirmed Robertson.
He admits that he was concerned about the money and frequently questioned whether he was supposed to receive it, but was assured that it was his.
“I bought my house with cash, so when I received the R182,000, I used it for renovations. I started purchasing furniture and turning the house into a home for my family,” said Robertson.
The following year, he filed his taxes again, only to be told he now owed SARS R167,000. “I was baffled. How could I owe such a large amount to SARS right after being refunded that significant sum? It then occurred to me that the R182,000 was never meant for me in the first place, and now I had to pay back money I had already spent,” said Robertson.
He then embarked on a frustrating and tedious journey with SARS. “They (SARS) could never explain why I owed that much and continuously rejected my disputes. I had to sell my house because SARS decided to take legal action against me,” he explained.
After multiple attempts to resolve the issue, a SARS consultant in the Northern Cape eventually informed Robertson that the Government Employment Pension Fund (GEPF) had processed the same IRP5 form twice, which was why he now owed SARS.
“When I inquired about this with GEPF, they simply stated that this was the information they received from my former employer and denied any mistake on their part. My employer did the same and refused to assist me in any way,” said Robertson.
He mentioned that after one last attempt to clarify the situation, another SARS consultant revealed that this issue arose from MEM, and that other former SANDF members had been experiencing similar problems.
“This has negatively affected my health, my high blood pressure has increased drastically, and I even had to sell my house—something I worked so hard for.
“To this day, I am still in the dark about why I owe SARS such a large amount, while my former employer remains silent throughout this painful journey,” said a dismayed Robertson.
