ON THIS first Sunday of the year, we celebrate the Epiphany, or Three Kings' Day. In the Biblical times, the three kings or the three wise men or sage recognized the baby Christ and offered him gifts.
This new year 2017, three technocrats are taking back President Duterte and Congress' New Years' gift for the SSS pensioners by saying the proposed P2,000 SSS pension hike is not feasible.
It's déjà vu again for SSS pensioners, who lobbied hard the past two years to have their retirement funds increased to make up for the rising price of commodities, and to see it rejected by Congress and former President Noynoy Aquino.
President Duterte promised the SSS pension hike will be implemented. Joint Resolution 10 was passed by Congress.
Alas, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Finance Secretary Sonny Dominguez and Economic Director Ernesto Pernia thought the move will make the SSS bankrupt in ten years with a projected liability of P5.9 trillion. They said the option is to increase the premium rates, or to reject the hike.
The proponents of the pension hike said such projection was "ridiculous". The principal author, former Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares, said there were recommendations to recover the losses by improving its collection, go after companies that are delinquent payers, collect fines from these delinquent payers, and cut down millions of bonuses to SSS Board Members.
It remains to be seen if Duterte would decide to follow the three "unwise" men or the promises he made to the millions of pensioners. Let's see if the change is coming.
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VP Leni Robredo needs an SOS.
Her PR is a disaster unfurling in the calamity that is Typhoon Nina.
It was understandable that the VP was on vacation with her family long planned before Nina struck her hometown and the whole Bicol region. What was not understandable was how she responded.
When she arrived in Naga City a week after Nina struck and turned everything in the city topsy-turvy, she sounded defensive explaining why she wasn't able to come back. No flights were available. There was an 80-year old mother she had to attend to
Then later, she also took to criticize that the ongoing relief operations of the DSWD was slow to respond.
Those statements received a backlash online. From those saying the VP had no right to criticize when she was on holiday and that she should have focused on monitoring relief and rehabilitation rather than raising criticisms.
What comes out is that the VP is not earning support or sympathy from a public wary of her and her party's role as the opposition. And people also remember when her Liberal Party headed the previous administration, disaster relief in Yolanda and Pablo were disasters.
They say character is revealed during crisis moments. In this moment that could have defined the VP's leadership and her role as the opposition, it showed they don't know how to respond.
tyvelez@gmail.com