House panel ready to investigate SSS stock trading mess

The House Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability is ready to investigate the alleged personal profiteering of four Social Security System officials through stock trading.

This, after panel chair Johnny Pimentel said on Sunday after Bayan Muna party-list Carlos Zarate formally filed his resolution seeking to investigate what could probably be a case of conflict of interest.

"If the resolution filed by Congressman Carlos Zarate is referred to the committee, then we are duty-bound to look into the mess," Pimentel said.

"We've always made it a point to act on every resolution and every privilege speech assigned to the committee," he added.

In House Resolution 1434, Zarate sought the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the alleged conflict of interests and profiteering of the SSS officials.

Zarate filed the resolution after SSS commissioner Jose Gabriel La Viña pressed charges against Executive Vice President for Investments Rizaldy Capulong and three other officials for allegedly profiting from their position by trading their own stocks with the same stockbrokers who manage the SSS portfolio.

Other officials included in La Viña's complaint were Equities Investment Division chief Reginald Candelaria, Equities Product Development head Ernesto Francisco Jr. and Chief Actuary George Ongkeko Jr.

In his resolution, Zarate noted that it is "unjust" for SSS members to suffer additional burden, such as the planned increase in membership contribution, from the possible negative implications of the controversy.

Also, he said that the officials in charge of increasing and improving the members' fund life through prudent and high-return investments allegedly have become "saboteurs" preying on members' funds.

"With this latest development of conflict-of-interest dealing SSS executives, it would also be prudent to conduct an auditing on all the assets of the SSS board members and other officials, as well as lifestyle checks so as to ensure that they are not profiteering by using their positions in the agency while at the same time pushing for contribution increase or burdening the members," the resolution reads.

Pimentel hopes that the Social Security Commission, the governing board of the SSS, would compel the erring officials "to empty out their pockets of their crooked earnings."

"Those profits rightfully belong to and should go to the SSS," he said.

Aside from Zarate, House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries chair Ben Evardone also filed his separate resolution to probe the alleged stock trading scandal.

Evardone, in House Resolution 1433, urged his fellow lawmakers to probe the supposed stock trading anomaly, which he said, led to "investments opportunity losses" of the state-run social insurance program. —LBG, GMA News