A lawmaker on Wednesday called on the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to adhere to a recent Supreme Court (SC) ruling upholding the rights and welfare of retired teachers, ensuring that they receive the benefits they rightfully deserve.
This, as House Deputy Minority leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro commended the High Tribunal for the latter’s decision reprimanding the state pension fund and compelling the same to give a retired school teacher her due pension.
“Let this momentous ruling serve as a catalyst for positive change, prompting the necessary reforms to ensure that our educators retire with dignity and receive the benefits they have earned,” the party-list solon said.
Court records show that Clarita D. Aclado, in G.R. No. 260428, is a retired public school teacher and had outstanding loans with GSIS that remained unpaid even after her retirement.
The state pension fund had imposed interest and penalties on her loans, resulting in zero proceeds from her retirement benefits. Aclado filed a petition to challenge the decision of the GSIS Committee on Claims, which denied her request to lower the interest and penalties on her loans.
Consequently, the GSIS Board of Trustees also denied her appeal, stating that it was filed out of time.
Aclado then sought relief from the Court, arguing that the procedural rules should be relaxed in her case. The Court ultimately granted her appeal, stating that the GSIS Board of Trustees erred in basing its decision solely on a procedural technicality and failing to consider the merits of her request.
The SC also noted the excessive penalty charges imposed by GSIS on Aclado’s unpaid loan balances. It ruled that GSIS had not sent prior demands to pay, and therefore, Aclado cannot be considered in default.
It also ordered GSIS to waive the interest on arrears and impose a lower penalty interest, as well as return the excess amounts deducted from Aclado’s benefits.
The High Court also stated that GSIS, in entering into a contract with a private party, descends to the level of a private person, and therefore, the rules on contracts that apply to private parties also apply to GSIS.
This SC decision, Rep. Castro said, is a significant victory not just for retired teachers but also for all government employees who dedicated their lives to the noble profession of educating the nation’s youth and to government service.
“It is a clear message that the rights and welfare of our educators should never be compromised.” she continued. (PNA)
Photo credit: Supreme Court of the Philippines Official Website
