Palace: Premium hike needed to resolve SSS impasse

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has been bent on raising the rate of the monthly contribution of Social Security System (SSS) members, a Palace official said.

Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said the plan of the SSS to increase the monthly premium of its members would push through as it was the only way to end the deadlock in the agency.

“The President has carefully weighed both sides to solve the SSS impasse and he has already made a decision,” Andanar said in a statement released on Thursday, in reaction to some lawmakers’ call to defer the impending increase on the monthly contribution of SSS members.

On Tuesday, Malacañang announced that the President had approved the additional P1,000 pension increase of SSS retirees this month.

The pension hike, however, resulted in a 1.5 percent contribution rate increase, which will be implemented in the first quarter of this year.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella earlier said Duterte was not amendable to using taxpayers' money to fund pension increase, considering that the SSS is a private pension fund.

Thus, the SSS has opted to increase contribution rate to cover the increase.

Andanar said the contribution hike would help increase the investments and stabilize the pension fund.

“The increase in the SSS pension effective this quarter wil be financed by current contributions and investment income,” Andanar said.

“The planned 1.5 percent increase in contributions in May 2017 will be used to improve the Investment Reserve Fund in order to generate higher yields for investments, and to further strengthen the overall viability of the pension fund so it can meet future obligations,” he added. (SunStar Philippines)

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