House panel vows to approve committee report on SSS pension hike on Nov. 15

The House of Representatives committee on government enterprises and privatization will approve next month its report on bills seeking a P2,000 increase in the monthly pension for Social Security System (SSS) members.

Committee chairman North Cotabato 1st District Rep. Jesus Sacdalan said the committee report on the 16 bills will be approved "with or without the presence of SSS officials) during the panel's next scheduled hearing on November 15.

“The proposals then were given back to us after the appropriations committee acted on them. We are done with the committee report and it is only a matter of approving it on Nov. 15,” said Sacdalan.

He said the committee report's supposed approval during the last hearing on October 18 was delayed because of the absence of SSS officials.

The lawmaker said the panel approved last September 7 the 16 bills seeking a P2,000 across-the-board increase in the monthly SSS pension.

He said the approved bills have been referred to the House Committee on Appropriations chaired by Davao City 1st District Rep. Karlo Nograles.

Once approved on November 15, the committee report will be tackled in the plenary.

Parañaque City 2nd District Rep. Gus Tambunting said the SSS pension hike should no longer be delayed as it had been reviewed thoroughly by the House and the Senate in the previous 16th Congress.

The proposed hike, however, was vetoed by former President Benigno Aquino III.

“The bill has priority status this 17th Congress. This was thoroughly studied by both the Senate and the House during the 16th Congress. So whether or not the SSS officials will show up on Nov. 15, we need to discuss and vote on the committee report of the pension hike bills so it can already proceed thereafter to the plenary,” said Tambunting.

He added that the authors believe that the pension hike can be funded, claimed otherwise by SSS officials.

“First of all, the collection rate of the SSS has not improved, it has remained at 40 percent. The lack of SSS funds is due to the unimproved collection rate of the agency,” the solon said.

He said that the SSS needs to improve its collection and sell its idle assets to boost the agency's coffers.

“The SSS has a lot of idle assets, but the agency has not been selling them. Wala po silang ginagawa duon, di po nila binebenta, di nila pinapagalaw. They should sell these idle assets so the SSS can fund the pension hike,” said Tambunting, chairman of the committee on games and amusements.

The 16 bills seek to amend Section 12 of Republic Act No. 1161, as amended, otherwise known as the "Social Security Act of 1997."

About two million current and future SSS pensioners and their families stand to benefit from the proposal. —ALG, GMA News