Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr has called on officials of the Social Security System (SSS) to step down because of their failure to properly manage funds.
He also called on Malacanang to appoint capable people to the agency and to stop using government positions as a reward to its political allies.
Marcos said officials running the SSS should resign because they are not doing a good job in terms of managing the funds of the agency that come from monthly contributions of employees and workers in the private sector.
“I think we should replace them with people who are better in managing funds,” the senator added.
He noted that these officials invested SSS funds in assets that are not earning.
“Again those are private funds that really should be managed better. I think the government should recognise (that it is) not allowed to use the funds based on its liking, it is not the funds of the government,” Marcos said.
He added that inability of the SSS to grant the proposed P2,000 pension increase clearly indicates the failure of its officials to manage the funds properly.
These officials, Marcos said, were appointed not because they know how to run and manage pension funds but because they are allied with the administration.
“We’ve seen this not only in SSS, we’ve seen this in other departments where the people running very large organisations within the government are incompetent. They are not fit for the job and it is the public who suffer,” he added.
High compensation given to SSS officials, according to Marcos, is irregular, given their dismal performance.
In the meantime, the senator said he believes that it is best for the executive and the legislative to get together and try to forge a win-win solution for SSS members, particularly those who rely mostly on their pension for their daily expenses.Marcos is one of the co-authors of a resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that it is standing by its position to pass the bill increasing the pension of retired SSS members.
The resolution was authored by Sen. Francis Escudero.
Escudero said Congress can override the veto of President Benigno Aquino of the proposed P2,000 pension hike if lawmakers who voted to pass the bill will stick to their position.
“I heard that members of the House of Representatives voted unanimously for the passage of the proposed pension increase, and 15 senators voted to pass the proposed bill last year.
I do not see why we can’t override the veto,” he explained.
The Senate and the House of Representatives need to get two-thirds vote to override the veto of the president.
But since the measure originated from House of Representatives, the move to override the veto must also emanate from the House before the Senate can act on it.