Ifugao board member urges Duterte: Give pension hike

LAGAWE, Irfugao – President Duterte was urged by a provincial board member here to look after  welfare of retired government service workers who are aging.

Ifugao Board Member Clemente Bongtiwon said government service retirees sought his help to bring to the attention of the President their unattended concerns before the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).

Bongtiwon said there is a need to adjust the pension received by retirees, but the process is long and tedious.

“Taking the laws enacted by Congress to benefit the retirees so-called the pensioners, RA 8291 of GSIS Act on Section 14 so states that all pensioners receiving their monthly pension shall be periodically adjusted upon the recommendation of the GSIS president and general manager, endorsed by the Board of Trustees, and upon approval of the President of the Republic of the Philippines,” he said.

Bongtiwon also cited RA 9994 Section 4 on the privileges of Senior Citizens provides that “retirement benefits of retirees shall be regularly reviewed to be responsive and sustainability, practicable and feasible and shall be upgraded to make it at par with the current salary scale enjoyed by those in actual service.”

“Why are these laws sleeping in the Cabinet shelves of Congress. The implementation of these laws should be the oversight of both House of Representatives and Senate with the present administration of President Rodrigo Duterte in compliance to his campaign,” he said.