CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The Social Security System has strongly urged its members to transact directly with the agency and avoid dealing with fixers or report unscrupulous transactions to SSS officials or authorities.
SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Aurora Ignacio said they received reports last month from their Bacolod branch that 15 pensioners were victimized by unscrupulous fixers whose modus operandi was to advance portions of their approved SSS pension loan then ran away with the pensioners’ cash cards.
She said the pensioners filed a case against the suspects with the National Bureau of Investigation last April 24. “We urge our retiree-pensioners to be vigilant. Do not transact with non-SSS employees. Those who want to avail of the pension loan must personally apply in our branch offices nationwide,” Ignacio said.
She said loan releases hit P1 billion since they implemented the Pension Loan Program (PLP) in September last year.
Ignacio said while the program has met its objective to provide immediate financial assistance to its pensioners for their short-term and emergency needs, she reiterated her appeal and urged pensioners to be vigilant and avoid transacting with people promising quick loan fixes or assistance in exchange for money, especially for the PLP.
“We are pleased to note that our pensioners are now relying on SSS for their immediate financial needs instead of going to loan sharks. But sad to say, there are people who take advantage of our pensioners during their times of need. This has to stop. And this will only stop if our pensioners will no longer entertain any deal with these individuals who exploit them,” she said.
As of May, PLP releases reached P1.006 billion with 41,926 pensioner-borrowers for the nearly eight-month period of its implementation, according to Ignacio. SSS started offering PLP in celebration of its 61st founding anniversary and is set to provide emergency loan assistance for retiree-pensioners.
Data showed that Bacolod branch has the most number of approved loan applications at 2,696 and the highest amount of disbursed pension loan at P56.76 million. This was followed by Diliman branch with 2,177 approved loan applications for P56.09 million amount of pension loan; Cebu branch with 1,547 availees for P38.42 million pension loan releases; and Victorias branch in Bacolod City with 1,733 availees for P36.48 million pension loan.
She said of the total number of approved loan applications, majority of the pensioners or 92.16 percent preferred to pay their pension loan for 12 months followed by some 6.25 percent who chose to pay within six months while the remaining 1.59 percent opted to pay within a three-month period.
In March, SSS relaxed its guidelines for more than 1.2 million qualified retiree pensioners so that those who are receiving their monthly pension even for just a month and is already posted in the system, is already qualified to avail of the SSS pension loan. Previously, a retiree pensioner must be receiving his monthly pension for at least six months to qualify for the pension loan.
The new guidelines for PLP application also allowed the presentation of other government-issued identifications cards aside from the Social Security Card or Unified Multi-Purpose Identification card as a form of identification.
According to Ignacio, members may also present the following cards as a form of their identification: Alien Certificate of Registration issued by Bureau of Immigration; Driver’s License issued by Land Transportation Office; Firearm Registration, License to Own and Process Firearms, and Permit to Carry Firearms Outside of Residence from the Philippine National Police; National Bureau of Investigation Clearance; Passport; Postal Identity Card, Seafarer’s Identification and Record Book (Seaman’s Book); and Voter’s ID Card.
“In absence of a primary ID card or documents, the filer shall present, submit any two valid ID cards or documents, both with signature and at least one with photo,” she said. (With a report from Mindanao Examiner)
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