MANILA, Philippines -- At least two senators are urging the country’s financial managers to immediately assess and address any “after effect” of the collapse of US investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. on local financial institutions, including insurers and pre-need providers.

Opposition Senator Loren Legarda and neophyte Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero specifically asked the two state insurance firms -- the Government Service Insurance System and the Social Security System -- to immediately disclose any “direct or indirect” exposure they might have in Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, , an investment bank in US, or with the American International Group Inc. (AIG).

Legarda noted that in September last year, GSIS claimed that it would stash up to $1 billion overseas under its global investment program.

“The Government Service Insurance System and the Social Security System should also instantly disclose and resolve any direct or indirect exposure they might have in Lehman, or in American International Group Inc. (AIG), which is also in financial distress for the same reasons as Lehman,” she said in a statement.

Escudero, chairman of the Senate committee on ways and means, agreed, saying the GSIS should confirm if it has indeed invested in Lehman.

“Well, magandang malaman yan kung nag-invest nga dahil $4 billion with investible funds ang hawak ng GSIS at kinabukasan yan din ng GSIS employees [it will be nice to know if GSIS will disclose what it has done with its $4 billion in investible funds because that money is the future of GSIS employees],” he told reporters.

“Pangalawa, ika nga nila pag bumahing ang Amerika, yung ekonomiya ng Amerika lahat ng plema nakakarating sa atin [Secondly, so they say that if America sneezes, the American economy, all its phlegm reaches us],” he said.

Legarda said the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas [Central Bank of the Philippines], Insurance Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission must promptly ascertain and address any “after effect” of the current economic condition in the country.

She said she was not that concerned about entities listed in the Philippine Stocks Exchange but more on entities that were covered by “less rigorous disclosure rules.”

“If any banks, insurers, pre-need providers or other institutions take a direct or indirect hit from Lehman's failure, then they should be required to address those losses right away, such as by raising additional capital, or putting more cash in their trust funds, if necessary, to safeguard depositors and investors," Legarda added.