The Nationalist Party in government has always believed in showing solidarity to that section of society that really needs it – so much so that as soon as Lawrence Gonzi was appointed Prime Minister, he appointed Dolores Cristina as Family and Social Solidarity Minister, rather than for social policy as it was always known.

In fact it is this government’s practice to ensure that everyone gets what s/he deserves; no more, no less.

Unfortunately, there are those who abuse of the benefits which are available for those who genuinely need them. There are times when this money ends up in the pockets of those who in reality do not deserve to receive such benefits.

It is with this objective in mind that the government has set out on the warpath to curb abuse and fraud. It is with this aim that the Fraud and Investigation Direct-orate was set up early last year. To enhance the Department of Social Security’s capacity to fight fraud, a director (Fraud and Investigation) was appointed together with an assistant director and a number of inspectors. Training programmes were carried out to strengthen the expertise of the desk officers in the fraud and investigations unit.

In order for this goal to be reached there must be collaboration and cooperation between various departments and agencies, such as the Employment and Training Corporation, the Department of Social Security, the Directorate for Fraud and Investigations, the Department of Inland Revenue, the Tax Compliance Unit and the Department of VAT, to mention a few.

For instance, if a person is registering for work with the ETC and receiving unemployment benefits from the Department of Social Security, while in the meantime working illegally, the abuse is across a number of entities.

Investigations by this directorate began around June 2005 and by the end of August the government had already saved about Lm250,000 as a result of fraud investigations.

One particular benefit which is often abused of by the Maltese is the invalidity pension. In fact, Parliament is in the process of discussing amendments to the Social Security Act in order to address this issue.

The invalidity pension is given to those who stop working as they claim that they are unfit for work. To use a familiar term, these are boarded out and start receiving an invalidity pension. In this manner these people no longer form part of the economy but some of them eventually find themselves in the black economy.

In 2002 there was a 12.8 per cent increase in the number of beneficiaries over 2001 and a 30.8 per cent increase over 1998. The government’s expenditure on invalidity pensions is 15 per cent of the total expenditure for retirement pensions.

Therefore this is one of the main reasons why the government wants to reform the invalidity pension. While providing for those genuine cases, the abuse by those receiving an invalidity pension while being active in the underground economy must be curbed.

The government intends to adopt a holistic approach to reform. The current criteria need to be revised to be stricter and also to adopt the practice of rehabilitation and alternative work. Some individuals may be unfit for certain work or may be unfit to work for a definite period rather than as is the current practice, where many are declared unfit indefinitely.

Meanwhile, the directorate will continue to receive and investigate reports. Decisions may be appealed with the Umpire.

It is a must that we understand that this is not a case of big brother watching over us. It is not a vindictive tool to be used by one citizen over another.

We cannot adopt the “not in my backyard” syndrome where we want justice done but we don’t want to get involved.

It is our responsibility as citizens to keep the government aware of cases of abuse. As honest taxpayers it is our money that will be going down the drain.

It is good money that can be well spent on education, health and the environment.

The government is giving out a clear message, so let’s all play fair and not shirk away from our responsibilities.

Michelle Mallia is president of the Nationalist Party Women’s Movement