In an article captioned “You may never retired”
that appeared in wall street journal it states” that sum sizable number of
retirees may continue to work after
retirement due to so many reasons like their pension pot was not enough, they were ripped off of the retirement savings and majority
because they love what they do.
And according to Walter Updegrave
in an article captioned “Three Little mistakes that can sink your retirement, which
appeared in Yahoo Finance it states that “It’s almost become a cliché.
Virtually every survey asking pre-retirees what they plan to do in retirement
shows that the overwhelming majority plan to work. Indeed, a recent Merrill Lynch survey
found that nearly three out of four people over 50 said their ideal retirement
would include working. Which is fine. Staying connected to the work world in
some way can not only offer financial benefits, it can also keep retirees more
active and socially engaged”
In Mexico, according to a
report by CCTV America, erred on the 5th of April 2015, it noted
that a vast majority of retirees in Mexico do menial jobs in shops so as to
survive, the report went on to say that they received a daily pay of 20
dollars, which is far in excess of their monthly 8 dollar pension.
There are about 3 factors
that account for this development and they are as follow:
A Rising Medical Bills
Medical Bills while
workers have medical bills, retirees tend to have higher medical bills, even
though some of them are provided by government expenditure, but they tend to
have higher medical bills. The reason] being that this is the time they have
issues relating to health as a result of old age. But those that continue to
work may have to save instead of spending because their employer may have covered
them in their medical benefits
B Inflation
What it
portends is that your pension pot may not carry you through during retirement.
This is because during period of inflation, what N100, 000 can buy in previous
years may not purchase up to N 75,000 during period of inflation. How then do
you protect your pension pot during inflation? You may have nothing or less to
do to protect your pension pot during inflationary period. But the decision you take in either choosing programmed
withdrawal or annuity will offer the necessary succor. Because those who are more likely to be hit
by inflation are those on annuity as they have a regular income without
investment, as the investment that comes into their pension; go to the pool of
fund and not the annuitant; although they may continue to receive pension
throughout their life time, but the value over time may be eroded by inflation
But according to Michelle
McGagh of
citywire.com she observed that “Pension savers are still in the dark about the
impact the ‘inflation switch’ brought in by the government two years ago will
have, despite the possibility that it could wipe 25% off their retirement
income.” They went on to say that “Research by human resources business, Aon
Hewitt shows Brits do not understand what effect the switch from the retail
price index (RPI) to the consumer price index (CPI) has had” .The article went on to say that “Two years ago, the government announced plans to move the indexation of pensions from RPI to CPI. It did this because CPI rises a lot slower than RPI, as the latter includes housing costs, so it means the state pension will rise more slowly, as will public sector pensions, costing the government less money. When it comes to private pensions, the amount they pay out could also increase more slowly as many are tied to inflation, and would have adopted CPI instead of RPI.”
Although the article based their research on the situations in Britain, but the aftermath of globalization does indicate economy does not exist in isolation stressing that what affects one economy will definitely affects the other. And according to Nathalie BonneyHow rising inflation can destroy your pension” which appeared in money observer, the article noted that “Anyone who has bought a fixed annuity [which provides a regular income for life] could see the value of their pension erode significantly over time,' says Dr Ros Altmann, director general of Saga.
She adds: 'The longer they live, the poorer these pensioners become, as the real value of their fixed pensions is reduced by inflation.'
C FINANCIAL SCAM
According
to Sherisa Ngo in an article
caption “5 Things you need to do before
borrowing from pension”, which appeared
in wall street journal she noted that “Unfortunately,
seniors are often the targets of financial scams. The FTC recently
refunded more than
$2.4 million to
investors who were tricked out of millions of dollars in a precious metals
scheme. The FTC says many of the victims were senior citizens” continuing she noted that “The fraudsters
convinced investors to purchase precious metals on credit without making it
clear there were huge risks and costs involved. What many of the investors
didn’t know was that there was a possibility they would have to pay additional
fees or run the risk of losing their investments.”
In the
book Rich Dad Poor dad, Robert Kiyosaki noted that there are so many ways, one
can be rich, and he included the following, through inheritance, playing
lottery, investing or by being a crook or an outlaw but there is a price, you
risk going to jail. Kiyosaki (1995:351)
continuing he stated that ‘A great story must interest , excite and cause
people to look into the future and dream a little, there should also be
integrity behind the story, because our jails are filled with great story
tellers without integrity”.
From
this precursor above, it should be noted that through inheritance, one can
actually become rich. Scammer and con artist have long recognized and noticed
that; that they developed a format known as the universal format of next of
kin.
Believe that there is no free gift even in Freetown, once you have that in your
mind; it becomes increasingly difficult to scam you. In the universal format of
next of kin, people are sent scam mail asking them to present themselves of
owners of the fund, but does it exist ?
But why
do scammer and con artist target the retirees, the reason is not far fetch as
old people according to psychologist have the tendency to fall prey because of
their erroneous assumption that what did not achieve during youthful stage may
be achieved during their old age. They
are also moved by fake love that does not exist that is why I advocate for you
to have enduring and successful happy
retirement, put your old relationship in order, be in tune with your partner
and you will not be a victim of con artist.
When
Isaac Newton, the powerful scientist who enunciated the Newton’s Laws of motion
lost his fortune in the South Sea Bubble Company of 1720 due to corruption. He said
and I quote “I can calculate the motions of heavenly bodies but not the madness
of men”. Today in my people there is madness, everyone is thinking of getting
rich quick. (Kiyosaki 1990:70)
Yes I see it as madness in target senior citizen
for financial scam, and their vulnerability
also increases their urge for such vices.
It
could be observed that most people who involved in fraud and scam often end in
poverty . And as Prof Pat Utomi (2008) in “The Limit of lets share Economy, he
stated that like people who won lottery, they often return to poverty.
Therefore
the onus lies on the retiree to effectively manage his pension pot so as to be
able to live a happy and fulfilled life.
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