Metro Manila, Philippines – Senator Imee Marcos is urging four major social protection agencies to temporarily suspend the collection of contributions and loan payments for at least a month as the country faces rising prices amid the Middle East crisis.
The agencies are the Social Security System (SSS), Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Pag-IBIG Fund, and Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
“The crisis in gasoline and crude oil adds to the daily burden of every Filipino, especially our workers. It is only right that we give them at least a month or more of relief in paying their obligations,” Marcos said in a statement on Friday, March 28.
“Let us suspend salary deductions for now and release their wages in full, so they may somehow keep pace with the galloping rise in the cost of living,” she added.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, government agencies had extended payment deadlines and implemented loan moratoriums as a form of relief.
The country is under a state of national energy emergency due to fuel price hikes caused by the conflict in the Middle East.
The government has since rolled out subsidies for public utility vehicle drivers and operators, along with free bus rides and rail fare discounts.
However, the highly anticipated suspension of the fuel excise tax remains unimplemented, as the law allowing such relief will take effect in mid-April.
