MILITARY and uniformed personnel should contribute to their pension funds, former National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Cielito F. Habito said.
“You can’t have a pension system where the employee does not make any contributions,” he told reporters late Monday. “How did it come about that you allow a pension system where the employee does not even make a contribution?”
President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. in March sought reforms in the military and police pensions. Under the present setup, their pension benefits are taken from the annual national budget.
“Now that we’re trying to fix that picture, there has to be some kind of transition that will assure the financial solvency of both of the government and the military and uniformed personnel [pension] plan itself and it’s going to be a very difficult process,” he said “But we have to get there, we have to make the first step.”
Department of Finance (DoF) Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno earlier said that the pension system is not fiscally sustainable.
Data from the DoF showed that accumulating pension liabilities may increase public debt by as much as 25% by 2030.
Total unfunded pension liabilities have also reached P9.6 trillion, according to the Bureau of the Treasury. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson
