Gov’t settles DepEd-ARMM’s unpaid GSIS premiums

MANILA, Philippines – About 29,019 personnel of the Department of Education in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DepEd-ARMM) will soon enjoy the full range of government benefits they are entitled to.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) will release within 30 days P891.4 million to the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) which will cover all unpaid GSIS premiums for DepEd-ARMM personnel.

The DBM signed on Wednesday, June 11, a supplemental memorandum of agreement (MOA) with GSIS and DepEd-ARMM that will settle the arrears of all affected employees.

Another P100 million – without interest – will be released to GSIS within a year. Both payments will be sourced from savings under the 2014 General Appropriations Act.

“Public school teachers actually comprise a remarkable 80% of the civil service pool in the ARMM, and many of them have faithfully served their communities for most of their professional lives. Restoring their benefits is only just and fitting,” Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad said in a statement Wednesday.

The supplemental MOA is in line with a 2004 agreement between the DBM, DepEd-ARMM and GSIS, where DepEd-ARMM agreed to pay its obligations to GSIS within 15 years.

Abad said taking better care of DepEd-ARMM personnel “fits very nicely” with the Bangsamoro peace deal which “signals a period of greater socio-economic development in the ARMM.”

“The Aquino administration is keen on bringing more education, healthcare, and infrastructure services to this region, besides providing basic public services that Bangsamoro communities previously had little to no access to,” Abad added.

A draft Bangsamoro Basic Law will be transmitted to Congress once session resumes in July.

The law, which would create Bangsamoro juridical entity, will provide the legal framework of the final peace pact between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. (INFOGRAPHIC: The Bangsamoro peace deal at a glance) – Rappler.com