Castro: GSIS, SSS fund may still be in the mix for Maharlika fund after public fury wanes

MANILA, Philippines — A lawmaker has claimed that funds from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) may still be part of the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), despite these being omitted from the amended bill.

Alliance of Concerned Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said in a statement on Monday accused proponents of the proposed sovereign wealth fund (SWF) under House Bill No. 6398 of only removing the GSIS and SSS funds to let public anger to die down.

“For now, they are not including the Social Security System (SSS) and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) as the primary funders due to the public backlash, but in the bill, the said insurance systems are still open to funding the MWF, and they are just waiting for the people’s anger to simmer down,” Castro claimed.

“They would push through with the Maharlika Wealth Fund, and they would insert the SSS and GSIS funds and also other anti-people provisions, but they would just let the people’s anger wane down; that’s why it is only right to continue protesting this ‘budol fund’ so that it can be junked,” she added.

Castro said that both insurance systems — which opposition lawmakers said should not be used by the government to invest in projects local and abroad — would be put back based on the provision that allows the proposed Maharlika Investment Corporation (MIC) to source additional funding from investments of private corporations.

The Makabayan bloc solon said this is based on the latest version of House Bill No. 6398.

“The latest version of Maharlika can also compel local companies to shell our funds, ‘additional funding may likewise be sourced from investments of private financial institutions and corporations, as may be determined by the Board of Directors’, (Sec 11, par. 4),” Castro said.

It could be remembered that last Wednesday, Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo, one of the bill’s authors, announced that they are yielding to the public’s calls to remove the P125 billion from GSIS and the P50 billion from SSS from the pooled funds.

The P175 billion from the GSIS and SSS form a huge part of the proposed P275 billion starting a fund for the MIF — which also includes P50 billion from the Land Bank of the Philippines and P25 billion each from the Development Bank of the Philippines and the national budget.

READ: Proposed Maharlika Fund would no longer include SSS, GSIS funds — Quimbo

INQUIRER.net asked Quimbo’s office for a reaction, but the lawmaker has not replied as of posting time.

But aside from GSIS and SSS funds being put back eventually, Castro also alleged that the proposed MIC could write off debts by private business partners.

Castro cited observations made by former Makabayan lawmaker Bayan Muna chairperson Neri Colmenares regarding a provision on the MIC’s corporate powers where the MIC can condone any claim or settled liability to the company that made an investment.

She also claimed that the House Committee on banks and financial intermediaries is set to approve the bill in an executive session.

“Based on the latest version of the Maharlika Wealth Fund (MWF) bill that the authors are now repackaging as the Maharlika Investment Fund and discussions with Bayan Muna chairman Neri Colmenares, the MWF bill the Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries is set to approve today under executive session is still very dubious and designed for corruption,” Castro said.

Colmenares explained that, for example, a company that has a liability to the MIC could see the payments go down or be forgiven.

“For example, there is a firm that defaulted or cannot pay while under contract with the MIC.  They can bring that down if not set aside altogether the liability, or the MIC has a claim for damages from a firm, they can forgive it.  It will only take the Advisory Body’s recommendation and the board’s ok. This makes the chairman of the board very powerful and has billions of taxpayers’ money under his discretion,” Colmenares said.

“No amount of tweaking or amendments will save Maharlika because it is inherently public funds endangered by crony corruption. Maharlika cannot be approved and must be scrapped,” he added.

The establishment of the MIF, which the government would use to make investments locally and abroad, has been criticized by opposition lawmakers and netizens because they fear that once investments would not reap huge returns, the pensions of GSIS and SSS members would be affected.

Quimbo, on the other hand, said they removed the GSIS and SSS funds as they listened to consultations made with stakeholders.

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