GSIS ignoring PAC’s endorsement letters

I retired from government service on Aug. 20, 2004, and my wife on Dec. 31, 2004. Our retirement benefit vouchers say that my first pension would be on Aug, 20, 2009, and my wife’s, on Jan. 1, 2010. However, my first pension came on Sept. 1, 2004, and my wife’s, on Feb. 1, 2010. I asked  the Government Service Insurance System-Daet,  why this was so, and was told that the GSIS does not pay the first-month pension.

I wrote the GSIS president on Feb. 22, 2010 to complain and I received a response (dated April 12, 2010) from Mercedita Tayag, manager of GSIS’ Public Relations and Monitoring Department (PRMD), who cited Sec. 13 of Republic Act 8291 which provides that the GSIS shall start paying a monthly pension for life upon the expiration of the five-year guaranteed period covered by the lump sum. Tayag further said that the law does not require payment of a proportionate amount of pension.

On Feb. 27, I wrote back, contesting the GSIS’ interpretation of the law. I also pointed out that if this was the case, why didn’t the GSIS pay my wife’s pension on Jan. 1, 2010, which is the beginning of the month?

In her reply dated Jan. 6, 2011, Tayag reiterated that the law does not allow fraction or proportionate payment and that the GSIS has a policy to this effect. In a Feb. 16, 2011 letter, Tayag said that the GSIS had referred my wife’s case to a study group. As to my problem, she said the same had been referred to GSIS’ management for review.

In all its succeeding letters, including one (dated June 28, 2011) from the claims department, the GSIS reiterated its position that the law does not authorize fractional payment and that the GSIS has a policy regarding this, and that I should wait for the result of the review. Two years has passed since then.

When I told the GSIS that I would write directly to President Aquino about my problem, I received a letter (dated April 19, 2011) from Theresa Moll advising us that the GSIS had released my wife’s first-month pension.

In my last letter (dated Jan. 6, 2012) to the GSIS, I reiterated my request, citing the RA 8291 provision on when the monthly pension should start, noting that not all people are born on the first and last day of the month. In this letter, I also asked why the GSIS has two kinds of annual bonus—P12,600 for one group, and only P10,000 for another group.

My wife and I are receiving pensions of more than P10,000 each. Until now I haven’t received a reply to this letter.

I filed a complaint against the GSIS management for violation of RA 8291 with the Presidential Action Center (PAC) on March 10, 2011. I followed this up with two letters dated May 10, 2011 and on Aug. 8, 2011, because all I received from them were copies of endorsement letters to the GSIS which, however, just ignored them. I requested the PAC to endorse my complaints to the Ombudsman. My last letter, dated Oct. 10, 2011, suffered the same fate.

President Aquino, I am 100 percent with you on your “daang matuwid,” but it seems that some of your men are stuck in the “maputik at liku-likong landas.”

—PEDRO A. OCO JR., Villaflores Street, Barangay Gumamela, Labo, Camarines Norte