Clark, Pampanga. In his first ever consultation with GSIS stakeholders, Chairman Francisco T. Duque III engaged more than 500 members and pensioners in the province of Pampanga, to hear their concerns and inputs on how the state pension fund could further improve its services.
During the dialogue, Duque bared the new thrusts that GSIS is implementing this year including the reduction in the processing period for retirement and life insurance, motor vehicle and service loans, and the conduct of financial literacy programs for new government entrants and retiring members.
“Retirement and life insurance claims are now being processed within 30 days from 90 days, even shorter than the prescribed 90-day processing time under the law.”
GSIS also reduced the processing period for motor vehicle claims from 45 days to 40 days, as well as all service loans including the conso-loan or salary loan, to three days from five days.
“We will further help our members protect their hard-earned retirement benefits through the conduct of financial literacy programs in cooperation with the Civil Service Institute, the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation and other known financial literacy experts”.
The Chairman also unveiled the new vision of GSIS that is anchored not only on providing excellent service but on the aspiration to be among the top three defined-benefit pension fund institutions in the ASEAN region.
“The new Board demands that GSIS surpass its achievements in the last six years and level up by competing in the international arena.”
Duque is confident that GSIS will realize its new vision citing that as then Chairman of the Civil Service Commission (CSC), he has witnessed the pension fund’s transformation from a “poster child of complaints to the leading exemplar in service delivery under the Anti-Red Tape Act (ARTA) customer feedback survey”.
He stressed however that GSIS has no room for complacency with even more challenges to face. Duque said that one of these concerns is the need to improve the loan collection efficiency of agencies, particularly the Department of Education (DepEd), whose personnel accounts for more than half of the GSIS membership.
“We are discussing a new program with DepEd that will help improve the financial capability of its personnel, and we hope to launch it within the year.”
In this connection, Duque welcomed the issuance of DepEd Order No. 38, which prioritizes the payment of GSIS premium and loan payments over all other private lenders.
“We are heartened by the quick response of Secretary Leonor Briones who tasked the department’s liaison and agency authorized officers (AAOs) to ensure that the Php4,000 net take home pay under the General Appropriations Act is observed, after GSIS loan amortizations are deducted.”
AAOs are responsible for approving the loans of agency personnel before endorsing the application to GSIS for processing.
The Commission on Audit also heeded the request of GSIS to ensure the prompt collection of premium and loan repayments.
Under COA Memorandum No. 2017-15, Chairman Michael Aguinaldo ordered all auditors to report delinquent agencies that are remiss in paying premium and loan amortizations and those that fail to remit on time. These will be included in COA’s Annual Audit Report so that penal sanctions may be imposed upon the responsible officials and employees who violated the law.