MANILA, Philippines—The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) should not deprive its members of the maximum benefits just because their employers had been late or deficient in remitting their premiums, according to the Commission on Audit (COA).
In a recent report on the GSIS, the COA said that P21.77 million in premiums that were in arrears and the corresponding interest were deducted from members’ various claims in 2010 because their employers were late in remitting premiums, or the remittances were not posted on time.
As a result, the members did not get the full benefits as these were forfeited by the GSIS.
The P21 million in deductions were made in the GSIS regional offices in Tacloban, Cotabato, Dipolog, and Zamboanga cities.
But the COA said the delays in remitting premiums and unposted remittances could not be blamed on the GSIS members, thus they should not be punished.
It is the employers’ responsibility to see to it that GSIS payments are made on time, the COA said.
Primary obligation
“In the first cause, GSIS should consider that members are not at fault when the employers incurred delays in remitting or did not remit, thus, they should not be penalized for this. It is not the responsibility of the employees but the primary obligation of the employers concerned since deductions were already done from the salaries of the members,” it said.
It added that the GSIS should have pursued the collections from the agencies concerned instead of shifting the burden to the paying members. It pointed out that under the GSIS law, employers are required to remit GSIS contributions within the first 10 days of the calendar month following the month to which the contributions apply.
On remittances that were unposted or not yet credited to the members’ account even though these were actually paid, the COA found that this was considered as indebtedness on the members’ part and deducted from claims pursuant to the Claims and Loans Independency Policy.
According to COA, members should not suffer the consequences stemming from the lapses of the GSIS’ computerized programs.
“The practice of collecting the premiums in arrears and interest from the money claims of members to protect the interest of GSIS deprives the former of their due benefits and at the same time exonerates the government agencies from their obligation to remit the personal and government shares which are contrary to the provisions of [the GSIS law],” it added.
In response, the GSIS in Tacloban City said the premiums in arrears were unpaid premiums resulting from salary increases when the remittances were still based on the old salary rate. It also said that a mass recomputation was made since June 23, 2010. The refund of premiums in arrears and interest is ongoing.
Recommendations
The COA recommended that the GSIS send public billings to agencies with unpaid premiums and discontinue the practice of automatically deducting from the members’ claims. It also said the GSIS should refund the premiums and corresponding interest incorrectly deducted from the members’ claims.
It suggested that the GSIS enhance its computerization program so that members’ accounts would reflect all postings properly. The GSIS should also see to it that the accounts of retiree members were updated before their retirement benefits computed.