AMID Senate deliberations on a bill that proposes to raise the pension of SSS members, a party-list lawmaker on Monday asked the Social Security System (SSS) to stop “sabotaging” the proposed pension increase.
“The SSS should stop trying to delude the people and the Senate that it has no funds for the P2,000 pension increase because this is not true. The SSS board is trying to sabotage the passage of the P2,000 pension increase, even if it has actually admitted several times that it has the funds for the pension increase. The increase will only shorten its fund life to 2029, instead of the current 2042,” Party-list Rep. Neri J. Colmenares of Bayan Muna said.
Earlier, the SSS claimed that it has no funds for the P2,000 pension hike.
In a news report, SSS President and CEO Emilio de Quiros Jr. said that the P2,000 pension increase will result in a decrease in the actuarial life of the pension fund by 13 years.
According to de Quiros, the monthly contributions of its members would have to be raised to 15 percent, from the current 11 percent to offset losses and extend the pension fund’s life.
He said that the SSS needs at least P49 billion every year once the measure is passed into a law.
Moreover, Colmenares said 14 years is more than enough for the government and SSS to find ways to increase its fund life, saying that in 2001, the SSS declared that it has a fund life of only five years and yet it was able to increase this to 2042 in just 14 years.
“If it previously survived a five- year fund life, then surely it can also survive a 14-year fund life. Truthfully speaking, we are in a better shape than the United Kingdom which has a fund life of only up to 2027 and Canada which has a fund life of 2022 or merely seven years,” Colmenares, a senior deputy minority leader said.
The lawmaker said that the SSS has P428 billion in investment fund, which generates an investment income of an average of P32 billion per year.
“With this, the net revenue of the SSS in 2014 was a huge P44.47 billion. Its assets amount to nearly P 500 billion,” Colmenares added.
Instead of harping on increasing contributions, Colmenares added that the SSS should improve its collection efficiency from the employers of its 29 million members and collect the billions of pesos in contributions which delinquent employers failed to remit in the last 10 years.
He also said that the SSS should cut down in bonuses and perks given to its board members and collect the more than P200-million retirement package given to SSS board members in 2009 and collect the fines imposed by the courts against employers who violated the SSS law.
“If this is not enough, then Congress can always provide for subsidies as provided under Section 20 of RA [Republic Act] 8282 as amended. There is no way that the SSS will go bankrupt as the SSS wants people to believe. In fact, under Section 21 the Philippine government guarantees the benefits and solvency of SSS,” he added.
The House of Representatives has already approved House Bill 5842, mandating a P2,000 across-the-board increase in the monthly pension of retirees, while the Senate is currently deliberating an identical measure.