Dispatch from Crame No. 1010:
Sen. Leila M. de Lima's statement on the Increase in PhilHealth and SSS Contributions

The year 2021 is supposed to be the first year of our recovery. In order to do so, our economic team is racking their brains out for anything that would resuscitate our struggling economy and provide a roadmap for our fellow Filipinos towards a better future.

We are looking at tax breaks for entrepreneurs, loan assistance from our banks, rent and mortgage relief and many other means to keep Filipinos employed and give them more money in their pockets.

Now comes SSS and PhilHealth which, in their attempts to increase revenue, REQUIRE their members to cough up more money and increase their contributions.

Nagkakanda-ugaga na nga ang mga Pilipino sa paghahanap-buhay at pagtitipid, sila pa talaga ang huhuthutan ng SSS at PhilHealth.

Implementing a simultaneous increase of member contributions in both the PhilHealth and SSS in the midst of an unprecedented loss of income brought by this pandemic and other disasters, is utterly heartless and oppressive.

Increasing SSS and PhilHealth contributions not only would result in less employment due to increased cost but also to possible delinquencies of members who cannot afford the additional payments required.

PhilHealth has yet to settle the corruption issues hounding their institution. Gaano kayo katiyak na hindi na naman maglalaho na parang bula yang dagdag na singil ninyo? Common sense would dictate that those found to have anomalous transactions in PhilHealth by the Senate and DOJ investigations are first held accountable before implementing a hike in contributions. But the Duterte administration's head-scratching policy decisions and overall botched pandemic response have all but confirmed that common sense is not its strongest suit.

O baka naman talagang wala kayong pakialam sa taumbayan at 'yan talaga ang modus niyo? First, you and your corrupt and unscrupulous henchmen steal from the nation's coffers. Then, the President either denies their involvement, covers their tracks, or simply plays dumb like nothing has happened, even if all evidence points to their guilt. Finally, the scam is completed by placing the burden once more on the Filipinos' shoulders. Pinaglololoko at pinapaikot niyo lang ang taumbayan.

Matapos gawing personal ATM ng ilang kawani ng PhilHealth ang mga kontribusyon ng taumbayan, at matapos nilang mahuli sa mga ganid nilang pangungubra sa pinagpaguran ng mga Pilipino, ipapasa naman nila ngayon ang kalugihan nila sa mga Pinoy?

Panagutin niyo muna ang mga nagnakaw sa taumbayan! Hindi yung habang nagpapasasa sila sa kontribusyon ng mga Pilipino, para bang wala nang nangyari.

(Access the handwritten version, here: https://issuu.com/senatorleilam.delima/docs/dispatch_1010)