President Aquino leads commemoration of 55th
Anniversary of the Social Security System
President Benigno S. Aquino III joined the
officials and employees of the Social Security System in commemorating its 55th
Anniversary held at the pension fund's main office in Quezon City on Monday.
In his speech, the President hailed the SSS for
being a steadfast and reliable partner of Filipinos in need.
“Limampu't limang taon na po ang nakaraan nang
itinatag ang Social Security System. At mula noon hanggang ngayon, naka-angkla
ang iisang mandato ng kawanihang ito: ang mabigyan ng seguridad sa kinabukasan
ang mga kababayan nating miyembro niyo,” the President said.
“Kayo ang takbuhan at sandalan nila Juan at
Juana dela Cruz sa mga panahon ng pagsubok at pangangailangan; tungkulin
ninyong pangalagaan ang karapatan nila sa mas malawak na pagkakataon sa kaunlaran,
at sa mas disenteng pamumuhay,” he added.
He also highlighted the trust and respect every
Filipino member of the SSS has for its officers and employees to prioritize the
utmost care for their hard earned money is taken.
“Nagbubukal sa iisang diwa ang kasunduan at
pagtutuwang na ito: tiwala. Ipinagkakaloob nila sa inyo ang kanilang mga
pinagsumikapang pera, sa tiwalang mapapangalagaan ninyo ito at maibabalik sa
hinaharap ang nararapat naman na kanilang matanggap,” the President said.
“Samakatuwid, hindi laruan ang perang nakalaan
para sa taumbayan. Ang pondo ng SSS ay hindi maaaring basta-bastang isugal at
ipagsapalaran nang tulad sa Casino,” he added.
He enjoined all SSS personnel to remain firm and
alert in his administration's war against corruption.
“Ngayon, higit kailanman, nananalig ako sa
inyong pakikiisa. Kaya naman ang hamon sa bawat isa sa inyo: titindig ba kayo,
papanig sa katotohanan, at magiging balakid sa maiitim na balak ng mga
masasamang loob? O magkikibit-balikat na lang ba kayo, at makikituwang sa
kawalang-katarungan?” the President said.
The SSS was created on September 1, 1957 through
the passing into law of the Social Security Act of 1954 or Social Security Law
that aims to develop and promote a viable, universal and equitable social
security protection scheme, suitable to the needs of the people throughout the
Philippines.
This year's theme is: “Sa SSS: Kabuhayang
Pinagsisikapan, Seguridad Maasahan.” (rck/11:20am)
President Aquino lauds SSS increases in net
earnings, investment income, members
President Benigno S. Aquino III lauded the
Social Security System on Monday for rising to the challenge of serving more
Filipinos and increasing its profitability, saying the efforts of the pension
fund would benefit more and more generations of Filipinos in the years to come.
The President offered a “salute” to the SSS for
increasing its client-base by 68 percent; net income by 11.8 percent and
investment income by 7.1 percent.
“Noong nakaraang taon, umabot sa 25.5 billion
pesos ang inyong net earnings; mas mataas ito ng 11.8 percent sa 22.8 billion
pesos na net income ninyo noong 2010. Pumalo naman sa 30 billion pesos ang
investment income ninyo nitong 2011, na may 7.1 percent increase kumpara sa 28
billion pesos ng 2010,” the President said.
He added that due to the “transactional online
services” offered by the SSS website that virtually allowed the pension fund to
operate 24-hours a day and seven days a week, more members were able to join
and apply for the services of the SSS.
“Ang resulta: tumaas ng 68 percent ang members
at employers na nakapag-enroll sa inyo sa unang apat na buwan ng 2012. Ang
dating 189,576 na bagong web registrants sa parehong panahon noong nakaraang
taon, naging 318,000 ang bilang,” the President said.
The President further said that improvements in
the SSS has been noticed by IT specialists around the world for its
innovativeness in using the world wide web and advancements in
telecommunications for the delivery of services.
“Dahil sa pagpapalawig ng inyong Text-SSS
facility, mas madali nang nakakapag-inquire ang mga miyembro ng SSS sa inyong
serbisyo. Maging ang mga dayuhan, napa-bilib na ninyo. Kinilala ng
Computerworld Publishing, isang global media firm mula Estados Unidos, ang inisyatiba
ninyong ito bilang isa sa kanilang 2011 Honors Laureate Program. Humanga sila
sa inyong inobasyon sa paggamit ng teknolohiya upang makapaghatid-impormasyon,
maisulong ang kapakanan ng mamamayan, at maka-ambag sa lipunan,” the President
said.
In closing, the President told officials and
employees of the SSS that the hard work they are putting in to the improvement
and development of the pension fund would redound to more Filipinos in the
years to come.
“Magtiwala po kayo... hangga’t nakikibalikat
kayo sa ating pagtahak sa tuwid na daan, bawat kayod na ibinubuhos natin sa
trabaho, bawat hakbang natin sa pagpapatupad ng pagbabago, bawat sakripisyo na
pinipili nating gawin sa ngayon, sama-sama nating mapipitas at ng mga susunod
pang henerasyon (ang magiging bunga nito),” the President said. (rck/11:40am)
Aquino confers Order of Sikatuna on outgoing
Ambassador of Korea
President Benigno S. Aquino III conferred the
Order of Sikatuna with the rank of Datu (Grand Cross, Gold Distinction) on
outgoing Republic of Korea Ambassador to the Philippines Lee Hye-Min in
recognition of his contribution to strengthening the foundation of friendly
bilateral relations with the Republic of Korea during ceremonies held in
Malacanang Palace on Monday.
The Chief Executive conferred the award during
Ambassador Lee’s farewell call at the Music Room in Malacañang Palace on Monday
afternoon.
Ambassador Lee was accompanied by Ki-Hwan Kweon,
Counsellor for Political Affairs; Jae Hoon Lim, Counsellor for Economic
Affairs; Hyun Yong Chin, Counsellor and Consul and Kyong-Ho Min, Minister and
Consul General. Also in attendance was Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del
Rosario who witnessed the conferment rites.
The citation was read by former Ambassador
Miguel A. Perez-Rubio, presidential chief of protocol.
Ambassador Lee was cited in the field of
international relations and for facilitating official development assistance in
support of his country to the various projects of the Philippine government.
During his tour of duty to the Philippines,
Ambassador Lee was commended for his significant contribution in setting up the
P150-M modern rice processing facility in Iloilo to help stabilize the rice
supply in the country. The facility was inaugurated last March.
The Iloilo rice processing complex (RPC) is one
of the four facilities funded by a grant from the Korean government through the
Korea International Cooperation Agency.
Last August, President Benigno S. Aquino III
witnessed the signing of a loan agreement between the Philippines and South
Korea for the Jalaur River Multipurpose Irrigation project in Iloilo.
Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima signed the
$207.88 million loan agreement with the Export Import Bank of Korea (Korea EXIM
Bank) Executive Director Sang-Wan Byun for the construction of the multipurpose
irrigation project.
The loan agreement also marked the largest-scale
assistance for a single project extended by the South Korean government to the
Philippines through South Korea’s Economic Development Cooperation Fund since
its establishment in 1987. (js)
Malacanang appeals to people in areas affected
by earthquake to cooperate with government agencies
The Aquino administration appealed to the people
in affected areas of the earthquake to cooperate with the government agencies
to ensure their safety, a Palace official said on Monday.
"Ang unang konsiderasyon po ng ating
pamahaalan ay ‘yung kanilang safety. Nagkaroon na po ng isang alert level III
‘nung Biyernes at ang mahalaga po doon ay iligtas ang mga taong nasa mga
delikadong lugar," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during
the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Monday.
Lacierda called on the people to remain vigilant
and take the necessary safety precautions.
"If we’re still experiencing any
aftershocks sa area, we’d like to encourage the people not to go back in the
area. Pero kung may go signal na from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction
and Management Council and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
Council na safe na, then that’s the time to go back," Lacierda said.
"Ang pakiusap lang namin po ngayon ay
sundin ang mga suggestions or mga instructions ng ating government officials.
The only thing that we’re concerned with is your safety," he said.
The Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG) has started conducting a damage-assessment on the areas
affected by the earthquake.
"One of the things na mahalaga with respect
to our buildings is that it should comply with the National Building Code. May
bago tayong Building Code na ginawa and that’s why it should be in compliance
with the requirements of the National Building Code," he said.
At least 28,000 residents were affected by the
magnitude 7.6 quake that hit Eastern Visayas on Friday, the NDRRMC said on
Monday. The earthquake claimed the life of one person.
Lacierda also thanked the media for helping the
government in the information dissemination.
"Over the weekend, we experienced an
earthquake where the epicenter was in Guiuan, Samar and I’d like to, again,
extend my heartfelt gratitude to mass media, to our friends in the radio
stations, our broadcast stations," he said.
"And we’d like to thank Bombo (Radyo),
DZRH, DZMM, DZBB and all of the other stations—Radyo ng Bayan, yes—which had a
role in disseminating important information and as well as informing the public
about the need to evacuate. And, once more, it demonstrated our partnership between
government and mass media and I hope in times of crisis we can rely on each
other for the proper dissemination of information," he said. (js)
