The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) looks forward to a stronger year ahead, banking on the numerous milestones it achieved in 2008.
The GSIS, still the top earning government enterprise in the country, expects this year’s net income to increase by 25 percent, reaching P50 billion.
“This has been a very difficult year not only for the GSIS but also for the rest of the world. There has been so much economic meltdown. The GSIS, however, defied all these hurdles and now the future looks bright for us,” said GSIS President and General Manager Winston F. Garcia.
The pension fund cushioned the effects of this year’s global economic meltdown by taking advantage of great opportunities in 2008, including the sale of its 27 percent stake in Manila Electric Company (Meralco) to food and beverage conglomerate San Miguel Corporation.
GSIS stands to earn around P13 billion from the sale of the Meralco shares. The shares were sold at 102 percent premium or a total of P27 billion.
“The sale of our Meralco shares was one of our achievements during the year. We refuse to pass up on great opportunities like this. We sold the shares at a very high premium and in the end, it would be our members and pensioners who will benefit from these kinds of investment decisions,” Mr. Garcia said.
“The GSIS exists for its members and pensioners. We strive hard to improve our operations, think of better policies, and remain financially sound so we could give back what is due them,” he added.
The pension fund recently announced an increase in monthly pension starting next year. This is the tenth consecutive year that the GSIS hiked monthly pension benefits for qualified pensioners. If compounded, the pension fund has increased its monthly pension benefit by as much as 84 percent over the last ten years.
January to October 2008 data from the GSIS showed the pension fund has already disbursed P28.6-billion worth of claims and benefits to pensioners, 12 percent higher than the P25.5 billion released during the same period last year.
Bulk of the total claims and benefits disbursed during the period came from retirement benefits wherein P25.6 billion were released from January to October 2008, representing a 15.8-percent increase from P22.1 billion given out in the same period last year.
On top of this, the pension fund also approved the release of P1.18 billion as Christmas cash gifts to pensioners this year. The amount is an improvement from last year’s budget of P923 million. The state-pension fund expects another year of record-breaking disbursements of claims and benefits this year and the next, as it continues to improve its financial standing.
“We are happy to give more to our pensioners. This, we are able to do by tightening our belts, implementing more efficient policies, and making prudent investment decisions,” Mr. Garcia added.
