Exclusive by Raïssa Robles
When I interviewed President Benigno Aquino III on April 16, 2015, one of the very first things he told me was that he intends to fix the pension system for the military and policemen. This includes passing an amended law and identifying ways to fund its seed capital, which is estimated to cost over P1.7 trillion.
According to news reports, as of the year 2000, unpaid pensions had reached a total of P18 billion. A Senate study, posted at the end of this piece, warns of a “looming pension crisis.”
I did not write about this for South China Morning Post since my main topic for the one-on-one interview with President Aquino was the South China Sea dispute.
So I asked my SCMP editor if I could write about this on my blog and he said yes.
I am not very familiar with the pension system for the uniformed services. So I’ve decided to simply post word-for-word what Aquino told me about it. Here it is below:
PRESIDENT AQUINO: Then, I’m tackling ‘yung pension system… Pension system for the uniformed services does not have a pension system per se. They are not members of GSIS (Government Service Insurance System), not the SSS (Social Security System). They used to have their own. In the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), it was RSBS (Retirement Separation and Benefit System), and then mismanaged.
So, by next year, I think the figure they are demanding about that will come from the budget and no contributions from the members — about 80-plus billion. When you look at the budget… Can we just use last year’s budget of about two trillion? Iyong figure between 25 to 35 percent is the one that you can use. Everything else is parang override expenses, ‘yung personal service or MOOE (maintenance and other operating expenses). So assumed 25 percent, so 500 [billion] tapos 80 [billion] of the 500 [billion] is already earmarked for just paying the pensions and benefits.
Now, so there’s no system then it’s index to current salaries and wages. Every time you increase for the active, you increase, correspondingly, for the retired. The whole concept of pension system is, you have seed capital, you invest; by the time there are obligations, the interest, parang the growth of that fund based on the obligations…Iyong contrast to the pay as you go systems that we are…Now, we don’t have it.
So, we’re asking for amendments to the law. Number one, take away the indexing feature, then… In the sum kasi, for seed capital is from a low of about 1.7 trillion to 4.3 trillion and the national budget is 2.6 trillion. So how do we fund it? ‘Yung we will reclaim land, the coastline, et cetera, then sell this as one of the principal methods for funding their pension system.
Raissa Robles: For the military?
PRESIDENT AQUINO: Military, the police. Uniformed services kasama na BuCor (Bureau of Corrections), BJMP —
Raissa Robles: Just to clarify, sir. Are you saying that they have never been under GSIS?
PRESIDENT AQUINO: I don’t know if they have never been. Basta, by that time, it was my responsibility. ‘Yon nga may RSBS, and then to some, parang may mga savings and loan yata e.
Raissa Robles: AFPSLAI (Armed Forces and Police Savings & Loan Association, Inc.)?
PRESIDENT AQUINO: AFPSLAI is not, ano, is not actually part of the Armed Forces. I’m not even sure kung sa GOCC (government-owned and controlled corporation). Parang it’s their savings and loan association. They elect their members. So ‘yon ang problema. That was left to me; and it keeps on growing.
Raissa Robles: And so you’re trying to rectify that?
PRESIDENT AQUINO: Yeah. It is also a hindrance to increasing the number of our security sector. Iyong our security sector is exactly the same number it was in EDSA, where our population was half. So, ‘di ba, parang you’re asking the same number of people to do a lot more work.
Pakikuha pala kay Mar ‘yung latest sa crime statistics niya. Ipinakita niya sa akin noong isang ‘yung rundown niya. Really impressive. We don’t know about half to a third of the crime rate incidences and really… They have this… I forgot the catchy name for the project pero all of these most wanted. We’ve been catching a lot of them. I’m just getting this really most wanted brought a substantial decrease in the number of crime incidences.
Now, I am digressing. Any question you want? Sonny (Coloma) is so eager to answer all of them.
Aquino’s critics would probably say this is a political move on his part, to garner votes for his anointed in next year’s polls. Tell that to the Marines. And the cops who are about to retire and are worried about their pension.
duquemarino says
The DU30 government is operating on a 2016 budget approved during the term of PNoy.
RJP Cavosora says
One proponent in the creation of RSBS was then Undersecretary of National Defense and US Navy Academy graduate Alejandro Melchor Jr. who was one of FM’s bright boys.
RJP Cavosora says
On RSBS
FB Cavosora, who was not involved in the creation of RSBS, once opined that the RSBS plan was actuarially infirm, and that it was never going to reach sufficiency to begin supplementary contributions as a pension fund. “Like a mentally challenged child,” he expressed, “RSBS will physically grow fat and fatter but it will never enter college.”
He explained that RSBS was not meant as a real pension system. It was designed to provide supplementary retirement benefits from the one-time government grant of P200 million plus the additional monthly contributions of each active soldier only upon reaching actuarial sufficiency as a pension fund.
However, it would & could never be actuarially sufficient because the returns from RSBS investments would never be enough to pay off benefits due. Liabilities (payable benefits) would always be growing at faster rate than assets (returns on investments) since each monthly member contribution (a payable liability) WAS NOT matched by an on-going employer contribution (an additional cash asset).
So while the fund keeps on growing and growing with additional monthly contributions from each soldier, there can be no actual pay out of benefits because actuarial sufficiency was just a pie in the sky. So from 1973 to 2006 (when it the contributions were stopped), NOT A SINGLE CENTAVO AS A PENSION BENEFIT WAS PAID OUT to contributors other than the total of their contributions. Essentially, soldiers were forced to park 4% of their monthly base pay for RSBS management to invest in any scheme it thought worthwhile such as country golf clubs, commercial properties, and etcetera. In 2006 it was closed
In the wake of the the 1996 Asian Financial Crisis, RSBS assets that were acquired through dollar denominated loans (such as a popular golf course in Cavite) exposed the risks it had taken, it forced the AFP leadership and th DND to review its viability.
RSBS still exists as a corporate entity to preserve its remaining assets until final liquidation (may be towards a contribution to a new system)
raissa says
So parang naging pyramid scam?
R Cavosora says
In effect, ganoon na nga. For all those years, since the Martial Law years to 2006, ang nakinabang yung RSBS management (typically headed by some retired officer assigned by the AFP Chief-of-Staff), board members, and favored pricinpals of investment programs.
Also, since RSBS was not like AFPSLAI (a savings & loan watched by the Banko Sentral) or AFPMBAI (an insurance coop overseen by the Insurance Commission), there was weak government oversight. It became a milking cow, providing behest loans for bad investment schemes.
Ang problema ngayon, the AFP & PNP leadership will probably resist the creation of a retirement system THAT WILL NOT PROVIDE PENSIONS AT THE SAME LEVELSwhic these national security institutions have gotten used to even if they may also be actuarially unsustainable. The high end of 4.3 trillion liabilities is probably based on the assumption that government will payout on the same levels. But, what pension systems do you know of that pays out nearly on the same levels of regular salaries?
And so at the end of the day, maybe the late Sen. Diokno was right, the AFP & PNP retirement system should be administered and be part of the GSIS system (but with a different defined benefits plan). Yes, it has indeed proven that having a separate pension and retirement system for uniformed security personnel is dangerous.
Any FIX PNoy proposes that does not meet AFP & PNP expectations will be politically problematic even if it is fiscally sound for the nation.
RJP Cavosora says
The AFP Pension & Retirement System That Could Have Been. (Part 3)
My father saw the wisdom in Sen. Diokno’s argument, but his expertise and education were not wasted. Like the good soldier that he was, he withdrew the proposal and let the esteemed senator set policy. He reported back to his superiors, and soldiered on to take lead in organizing the AFP Mutual Benefit Association Inc. (which provides accidental and death benefits) and the AFP Savings & Loan Association (AFPSLAI) Inc. Both are private, non-stock, nongovernmental organizations which were created for the morale and welfare of AFP personnel. These are overseen by the Insurance Commission for the former and the Banko Sentral for the latter.
Sadly, the Diokno’s GSIS idea never flourished. Perhaps, it was too forward-looking for his times. Today, GSIS would probably squirm at the idea, so would the AFP. Among bureaucracies, it’s called turf wars. Times are more complex now, but then again they are all government employees. They should swim together, rise or sink together. Maybe.
There has been much skepticism about these institutions particularly AFPSLAI of which I am an associate member by virtue of being once my father’s dependent. Are they sound and stable? Corruption free?
Let me put it this way, the combined assets of AFPMBAI and AFPSLAI assets can wipe out the P18 billion owed to pensioners ten times over. The AFPMBAI has paid out benefits to the thousands of soldiers who died while in active service since it was created in 1965, and AFPSLAI continues to payout 15% per annum in dividends.
These institutions are not government owned; they are member owned. More importantly, they have served to uplift the morale and welfare of our nation’s soldiers better than the AFP itself. AFPSLAI also serves retirees. Those who have placed substantial savings, earn 15% on the capital account and 3% on ordinary savings accounts.
There is always room for improvement, but these institutions have done way better than what government has done for them. For that, I thank God that he chose a carpenter’s son from a small fishing village in Leyte to show the way.
RJP Cavosora says
The AFP Pension & Retirement System That Could Have Been (Part 2)
Upon their return from the US in 1963, they became fellows of the Actuarial Society of the Philippines and joined the handful licensed actuaries of the country (successfully passing perhaps the toughest math-intensive professional examination). They then set out planning and designing a retirement and pension system for the AFP.
The proposed pension plan — commonly known as a “defined benefit plan”– was quite straight forward: each uniformed member of the AFP from the lowliest Private to the highest ranking General would contribute 5 to 7 percent of their monthly base pay and would be matched by the AFP; combined these would be pooled into a retirement fund which would be then invested in government securities, treasury bonds, and low risk securities. Upon retirement or death, a retiree or beneficiary would receive a defined monthly pension based on years of service, amount of contributions, and the investment returns on the fund. Management of the system was to be based on actuarially sound and prudent practices under the strict oversight of the Insurance Commission.
After a few years of consulting with the general staff, field officers, and some fellow actuaries they were ready for the next task: finding a sponsor of the Congressional bill for creating and funding the AFP pension and retirement system. With a carefully studied and prepared proposal on hand, Capt. Cavosora took lead in convincing Congress the need for such a bill.
Fearless and confident, he brought the study directly to the Chairman of the Senate Economic Affairs Committee, Senator Jose W. Diokno. The senator, a very capable Certified Public Accountant and self-studied lawyer, probably understood the basic plan and the numbers, but his opposition to the proposal was fundamentally political, not technical.
A technocrat at heart, Capt. Cavosora was surprised by Sen. Diokno’s response who articulated his opposition simply. “Captain, all our soldiers are employees of the government,” he said, “We swim together; we either sink or rise together. The AFP should be covered under the GSIS system.”
And then he added, “Also, it is dangerous for the military to have its own pension and retirement system separate from the government’s.”
Sen. Diokno’s last statement was quite prescient. In a few years, Martial Law would be declared, and he would also be jailed. A year after imposing Martial Law, Ferdinand Marcos decreed the creation of the AFP Retirement and Separation Benefits System (AFP RSBS) in 1973 which proved to be a milking cow for his cronies and henchmen in the Martial law military but a complete failure as a retirement system. It was closed in 2006.
Neither Major Cavosora nor Capt. Padiernos, actuaries of the AFP who had been officially designated to plan the pension & retirement system, were approached or consulted in the creation of the AFP RSBS; that proved to be blessings for their careers as actuaries in the private sector, but their absence proved to be a curse to the nation as a whole.
RJP Cavosora says
The AFP Pension & Retirement System That Could Have Been. Part 1
As the PNoy administration sets out to fix the AFP pension and retirement non-system that has left the government with P18 billion unpaid pensions and a looming crisis, it is relevant to understand that much of this challenge is tied to the nation’s history.
As early as the late 1950’s, the Armed Forces of the Philippines top leadership had been mulling the need for a pension and retirement system, but most of them probably did not know how to go about it especially for a very specialized field requiring unique financial management skill sets.
In 1960, my late father and later on employer, Feliberto B. Cavosora was a 32-year-old captain then serving under the AFP GHQ Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel which was responsible for the morale and welfare of troops. He was instructed by his superiors to find a capable junior officer and prepare for postgraduate studies in the United States. Their mission (which they so readily accepted) was to acquire specialized knowledge in actuarial sciences and management expertise in pension and benefits systems. Ostensibly, their longer-term mission was the formation of such a system for uniformed personnel of the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, and, back then, the Constabulary.
After more than two years studying, Capt. Cavosora (PMA Class of ’52) acquired his Masters of Business Administration in Actuarial Science at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and his junior then Lieutenant Justiniano Padiernos (PMA Class of ’56) completed a Master of Science degree in Actuarial Mathematics at Michigan State University. Both were in the company of a few other Philippines government scholars who eventually served as actuaries in government agencies and private insurance companies (one of whom designed the public housing benefit system which we now as the Pag-ibig Fund).
raissa says
And then?
So how did RSBS come abt? Was it a temp. subdtitute for the pension fund?
RJP Cavosora says
more on RSBS later.
RJP Cavosora says
Please delete my previous and subsequent posts. I can post a more condensed and synthesized comment. Sorry, I just cut and pasted from an article I was writing, best to edit the thoughts into one brief post. thanks.
raissa says
Done
Chit Navarro says
way to go Joe America!!!!!
you got the President’s ears and eyes since 2012… :) :)
yeah…he has our back… the best President ever!
drill down says
to ease the pain brought about by the faulty decisions made in mamasapano?
Rene-Ipil says
PNoy was merely talking about the P80 billion budget for the AFP salary and pension of active and retired personnel, respectively. About P50 billion for active personnel and P30B for retired. In 2010 it was about P43B and P20B, respectively, as shown in page 2 of Raissa’s link.
The pension and retirement cost for the military is financed through the yearly appropriation budget unlike in the civil service where the said expenses are borne by contributions of members to the GSIS fund. Meaning that the National Government is paying the soldiers’ pension retirement which they have not contributed to the fund. And the government wants to copy the GSIS system for the military.
There lies the problem because the military and the civil services have different hiring, retention and separation system, i.e., enlistment and re-enlistment of soldiers. Another problem is the indexation system where the retirement benefits increase with the increase of salary of active personnel. Thus, it is foreseen that in the coming years the budget for retirees would be more than that of the active military personnel.
So that in 2013 Senator Trillanes filed SB No. 1830 providing that members of the military would be covered by the GSIS system. I think the bill is pending, if I were not mistaken.
http://www.senate.gov.ph/lisdata/1803015263!.pdf
Ancient Mariner says
Do you know if, the junior ranks of the soldiers, sailors, airmen and policemen are being paid their pensions on time, late or not at all?
Rene-Ipil says
As stated in the senate study the retirement pay increases with the increase in the basic salary of soldiers (Section 17, PD 1638). In 2002 RA 9166 was enacted increasing salaries of soldiers. The government failed to implement the pertinent provision of the law because the IRR does not include such matter. Thus, a group of retirees has been asking the government up to the present to adjust their retirement pay accordingly.
In other words the usual obligation of the government to retirees are met except the corresponding adjustments due to the basic salary increase in the soldiers’ pay. Apparently the national budget does not provide for such adjustment expenses. Maybe due to some financial constraints or due to some policy considerations.
IMO the post Marcos governments from Cory to PNoy did not find the Marcos law right but had no sufficient courage to revoke the same so as not to offend the military for obvious reasons.
Ancient Mariner says
@Rene, thank you. Is it correct to say that all armed forces and police retirees are receiving a pension, albeit a reduced one?
Rene-Ipil says
I would say that the military retirees are now getting their retirement benefits as usual without any reduction. But the propriety of getting more is under further study by the government which is now formulating a rational pension system.
Ancient Mariner says
Cool. Thanks.
vander says
for cpmers and lurkers,
https://professionalheckler.wordpress.com/2015/07/25/leaked-sona-2015-draft-exclusive/
vander says
from that thread in FB:
comments, Ben Santos…”kung may SONA si noynoy. may sona rin si bnay,,
ang tawag SUNOG state uf the nation nognog”
baycas says
OT…
Sona maalala ng lahat ang tunay na pag-ibig…
Ang PAG-IBIG SA TINUBUANG LUPA…
baycas says
At hindi Sona ang pag-ibig sa…
RED CARPET FASHION SHOW: http://www.thesummitexpress.com/2014/07/in-photos-sona-2014-red-carpet-fashion-dress-and-attires.html
…Na mas entertaining sa iilan…
baycas says
http://www.dwiz882am.com/index.php/poe-o-roxas-presidency-magiging-positibo-sa-ekonomiya-ng-bansa-washington-based-iif/
baycas says
Nation…hindi Fashion…
SONA…hindi SOFA..
So fa, so gud?
vander says
“Pension system for the uniformed services does not have a pension system per se. They are not members of GSIS (Government Service Insurance System), not the SSS (Social Security System). They used to have their own. In the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), it was RSBS (Retirement Separation and Benefit System), and then mismanaged.”
OMG!
of all govt servicemen!
soldiers and police have no pension system?
ang mga nag-bubuwis ng buhay?
ang mga nagiging bayani?
anong ginawa ng mga namunong opisyales?
hindi totoo ito!
omg talaga…
duquemarino says
Hi raissa, any link on your recent south china sea article?
Btw, naging milking cow ng mga matataas na military and police officials ang AFPSLAI during the previous years, ano na kaya ngayon?
duquemarino says
Sa wwwdottimawadotnet on the scammed forces of the Philippines it was mentioned that AFPSLAI reportedly claimed that around P318 million of their fund was invested with the Legacy group of scammers.
cha says
Found a good background material on this from 2006 :
“A Military Pension That Never Was”
http://www.nfvzone.com/news/2006/11/12/2069281.htm
cha says
And another one from Rappler, 2013 :
“Military Pensions in Danger as COA Reports P47-B Fund Shortfall”
http://www.rappler.com/nation/43959-military-pensions-in-danger-afp-rsbs-coa-report
Ancient Mariner says
@Cha, you have starred again. Excellent research. I wonder how the pension of senior commissioned officers is dealt with?
If they have been receiving pensions uninterrupted during this time then they should all be lined up and shot. Reason, disregard for the welfare of their men.
cha says
“If they have been receiving pensions uninterrupted during this time then they should all be lined up and shot. Reason, disregard for the welfare of their men.”
Where is Duterte when you need him ‘no?
leona says
Some people are lucky and some are not. I am one of the lucky for not going as a pensioner in the military.
This pension topic is a trillion and a billion problem. Mismanagement it was surely. Tell us about patriotism and love of country!
Who were the thieves who got the military money for pensions? Nobody knows. In the civilian government, there are more personnel and most are GSIS members. They have that pension program. It seems it’s working so far so good. Why not adapt a similar program for the military and the policemen?
Or was it intentionally done to have a different system so it was easier to manipulate to steal the funds?
Is it still true that anywhere in the government, when one retires, one has to wait sometime to get the first pension? In the Judiciary? Where else? When such funds are allowed to be ‘invested’ recklessly by the higher ups, when it gets lost the reason is bad business decision. Really? Not stolen? Or not plundered?
I remember a true story related to me by the retiree. A retired CFI judge (now RTC). He got his first pension after 3 years. All because he sentenced the accused to life imprisonment and not death. He was given a difficulty by the boss for that. It can also happen again to anyone now.
Maybe for now, increase the retirement age to 60 years of age but no assignment to combat duties for the military and policement so as to minimize the on-going problem of being able to pay the pensions. For them 60 years is not old to continue in the organization.
But the thing is the FUNDS For Pensions Should Always be Well-taken of under a new retirement system program
Good article for our soldiers and policemen. Carry on! And thanks too.
:-)
moonie says
sometimes, I think, the pension money retirees are supposed to be receiving cannot be released on demand, even though said pension money may have been okay-ed for release early on. someone among the higher ups may have taken direct action, waylaid the pension money and without permission, invested the money in higher yield schemes; therefore locked, and cannot be liquidated immediately.
retirees have to wait a while longer to receive what is due them, minus the interest for that may go to higher ups’ pocket. the longer the retirees wait, the more interest their pension money is earning, the more money goes into the higher ups’ pocket, without the retirees knowledge. humble opinion ko lang po ito.
leona says
Higher ups always gets away with pension money here. Many say ‘Put more sharp teeth on the law here.’
Well, maybe a new pension system program should have more ‘bullets’ [not teeth!] into the law! When a Higher up delays paying that pension money, SHOOT UP as penalty for the crime done.
:-)
Chit Navarro says
It was whispered about then during the term of Pres. Ramos that the RSBS became the kitty fund of a very powerful lady at that time. If it was mismanaged, was there an audit on the WHY’s and the WHEREFORE’s and were there people charged for the mismanagement? Very interesting.
Another interesting fact: AFPSLAI is not government nor GOCC. If it i s a plain and simple savings & loan association, then it must be under the Bangko Sentral as a bank. I googled it and yes, it is a private, non-stock, non-profit savings and loan association supervised by the Bangko Sentral.
I hope the President really fix this issue for the military. And thank you Raissa for stating that this has been in the mind / plan of the President long before election period because by the looks of it, if this issue comes out in the SONA, then the opposition will look at it as an election program for Mar Roxas.
Rolly says
Established in the early years of martial law, this RSBS must also has been the milking cow of Marcos and cronies, considering their insatiable appetite for loose coins. Gloria, must have seen the cash cascades, grabbed the opportunity….sabay sabing, “ako naman”
Armed Forces Retirement and Separation Benefits System (AFP RSBS
Should AFP adopt new pension scheme?
http://opinion.inquirer.net/9581/should-afp-adopt-new-pension-scheme
By: Ramon J. Farolan Philippine Daily Inquirer
04:26 AM August 8th, 2011
First of all, let me greet Sen. Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes on his 40th birthday, his first as an elected senator enjoying fully the freedom that was denied him for seven long years by the previous administration. In an unprecedented act of betrayal, the Arroyo government charged him in a civilian court although the terms of surrender called for military justice under the Articles of War.
As I mentioned in a column last year, Ninoy Aquino spent seven years and seven months in prison. Sonny Trillanes spent seven years and six months in a Camp Crame detention cell. Two elected senators, both spending about the same time in prison; one assassinated at the Naia, the other gearing up for reelection in 2013.
Sonny Trillanes was elected to the Senate in 2007, just two months short of his 36th birthday. He was chosen by the people while in detention, unable to move around freely in order to campaign like other candidates, and working with very limited resources. Yet he won with more than 11 million votes, coming in at No. 11 in the senatorial victory lineup, besting administration giants like Mike Defensor, Ralph Recto, Prospero Pichay, and Miguel Zubiri, who placed No. 12. (Zubiri resigned his Senate seat last week.)
In 1973, Presidential Decree 361 created the Armed Forces Retirement and Separation Benefits System (AFP RSBS). Among its pertinent provisions were the following:
Initial funding (seed money) of P200 million in four equal annual payments starting in July 1974
AFP personnel to contribute 4 percent of monthly base and longevity pay
Contributions plus 4 percent interest refunded to those not eligible for retirement benefits
Retirement benefits would be paid from appropriations, but after four years the system would shoulder requirements in excess of P100 million
Funding for RSBS to come from appropriations and contributions, donations, gifts, and other earnings of the system
System to be administered by the AFP chief of staff
What was the purpose of the RSBS?
The RSBS was set up as a funding mechanism to guarantee continuous financial support for the military retirement system. The system upon attaining self-sufficiency would take over from the national government the payment of retirement/separation benefits of AFP personnel.
Why did the RSBS fail to attain self-sufficiency and assume payment of military pensions, which was the rationale for its creation?
The drumbeaters for a new pension scheme, to be known as the Philippine Military Pension System (PMPS), argue that the original RSBS was bound to fail because of several flaws in its charter: (By the way, the acronym makes it sound like a woman’s condition of discomfort—Pre-Menstrual Position Syndrome. I can almost see media going to town on this one.)
Actual funding was inadequate—government seed money of P200 million was given in five tranches starting in 1976 and spread over a four-year period. But as early as 1970, the funding requirement was already P712 million.
From the very start, the system was underfunded.
Structural flaws—employer-employee contribution rate of RSBS was 5 percent coming only from the member without any government share. In the case of GSIS and SSS, contribution rates were 21 percent and 10.4 percent, respectively, without any refund. Contributions came from both employer and employee.
The bright boys who came up with the RSBS charter obviously did not do their homework. Otherwise they would have discovered these flaws without too much effort. But that is what happens when people are gung-ho on a project for reasons of their own. The focus is on getting things started right away, believing that substantial issues can be addressed later and usually done by throwing more money down the drain.
The drumbeaters also warn that due to ballooning pension costs, there are signals that the government may be unable to continue paying pensions. They cite pension arrears of more than P15 billion. I would characterize these as scare tactics to get people on the bandwagon. We all know that any attempt to decrease pensions is a surefire formula for unrest in the military. Any sacrifices that need to be made must be shouldered by all sectors of society—the pork barrel of legislators, the excessive pay and allowances of executives of government corporations, the conditional cash transfers, and other similar government programs.
What is the status of the RSBS today?
Reports say that as of December 2010, RSBS remains stable with total assets of P12.6 billion as against liabilities of only P3.6 billion. Net income as of last year amounted to P108.6 million coming from real estate, marketable securities, lending, industrial park leases, and others.
One must take a close look at these figures. Accounting procedures differ from one agency to another. Smart accountants can make any company smell like roses for public consumption.
From a high of 203 regular employees in 2005, the manpower complement is now down to 85.
One last word. Any new pension scheme must also deal with the scandals of the past.
To the Filipino taxpayer, the RSBS is a reminder of the abuse of some military officers who took advantage of their position for personal profit and gain. Rightly or wrongly, the average citizen believes that RSBS failed not because of underfunding or structural flaws —although this may have been contributory—but more because of greedy hands and minds bent on advancing their own agenda to the detriment of the institution.
The reputation of the military organization has suffered tremendously in recent months. We must be careful lest we repeat the mistakes of the past.
There are all kinds of proposals to improve on RSBS. As with all programs, much depends on the individuals tasked to carry out any new initiatives. We must be prepared to reach outside of military circles to ensure that old boy networks do not dominate and interfere with the proper administration of the System.
Ancient Mariner says
I would like to think that if he said he will do it, then he will do it. Or at least start the ball rolling.
Bit then I’m biased in his favour.
NHerrera says
I have not gone to any detail beyond the interview proper, but I can sense from the one-on-one the great concern of the President on the military and police pension system. Definitely not coming from a “manhid” president.
yvonne says
Just subscribing to email notification.