Even the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has their own take regarding President Benigno Aquino III (PNoy) veto on the SSS pension hike.
Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said that this action of PNoy only shows his lack of empathy for ordinary Filipinos.
He added, “By vetoing the bill for increase of pension of SSS members, PNoy has clearly shown that his program of ‘inclusive growth’ is mere rhetoric. Do we vote those who will continue this anti-poor policy?”
On Twitter, he posted:
We must remember that PNOY also vetoed the bill on Magna Carta for the Poor. Do we vote those who will continue this anti-poor policy?
— Broderick Pabillo (@bppabillo) January 14, 2016
According to the bishop, this isn’t the first time PNoy vetoed on a bill that aims to uplift the conditions of the poor. He said that millions of poor Filipinos needed this as it would give them better shelter, livelihood, and access to health services.
The government defended this veto, saying that the Social Security System (SSS) does not have enough fund to sustain PhP 2,000 increase for its 2.15 pensioners. They said that this might result to the SSS filing for bankruptcy 11 years from now.
However, some netizens have a different take on this situation. PULPOLitika shared on Facebook that there are a lot of countermeasures the SSS can take to avoid bankruptcy like fixing their collection system, addressing corruption, and finding better investments.
What are your thoughts on the veto of the SSS pension hike?
