MANILA, Philippines – Another impressive performance, another bonus.

President Benigno Aquino III granted a P10,000 bonus each to employees of the Insurance Commission on Tuesday, January 21, when he attended their 65th anniversary, praising them for doing their jobs with “excellence and integrity.”

He also announced a fresh 6-year term for Insurance Commissioner Manny Dooc, to “give him the time and the breathing room to have needed reforms take full effect, and to allow him to continue his excellent management even after I have stepped down from office.”

“I was wondering, and I couldn’t recall, why there was no request for an anniversary bonus coming from the Insurance Commission. There is a law that authorizes me to grant every 5 years what they call ‘milestone bonuses’ – at least a P3,000 amount – which I can increase to P10,000. I think you deserve it,” Aquino said.

Aquino also vowed to approve the commission’s reorganization plan, as well as additional resources and manpower.

According to Aquino, the increase in number of the Filipinos insured by the commission has translated into greater investments from insurance companies into other industries. This has helped empower consumers and spur economic growth.

He said from the end of 2009 up to 2013, “insurance premiums have increased by more than 150%, from P78 billion to up to P200 billion.”

During that same time, he said, “the number of insured Filipinos has increased by more than 72%” so that more than 23 million Filipinos are now insured. Insurance has grown to become an P854-billion industry since by the end of the third quarter of 2013, and is projected to be a trillion-peso industry by the end of the year.

Aquino said the commission and Dooc’s work has helped the industry regain trust.

“The industry is doomed to fail when the insuring public has a gross distrust of insurance companies; and it likewise cannot grow when insurance companies do not have confidence in a market,” he said.

“Your agency’s regulatory work, under the leadership of Commissioner Dooc, has fostered trust among all stakeholders; and while there is more to be done in this regard, your performance so far has already helped encourage the rapid growth of the industry,” the President said.

Last December, Aquino also gave a P10,000 bonus to Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) employees for the agency’s achievements. – Rappler.com