Batas Mauricio
TOP officials of the Social Security System (SSS) have many things to explain on the raging scandal involving four of its executives, yet it is surprisingly keeping its lips sealed, giving the impression that it is endeavoring to hide something.
The first thing it should be explaining should be the precise act that the officials that are now allegedly being investigated by SSS today really committed. From the very little that is coming out of the media, it would seem that the only fault of these officials was their using the stockbrokers of the SSS for their own stock trading transactions.
From the little that I know, stock trading is an activity involving the sale or purchase of stock certificates which represent the investments on shares of stocks belonging to private companies. The shares of stock of a company earns largely from the dividends paid out by the company in the event of good business profits.
So, the question is, if the SSS officials suspected of wrongdoing merely used the stockbrokers of the agency for their own stock trading activities, which stocks did not belong to, or were not in anyway owned by, the SSS, they could not, and should not, be held liable for anything, criminally or administratively
What was it that truly happened here, since two of the officials involved in this raging scandal resigned from their lucrative positions, while the two other SSS executives are being investigated as of now, and are even projected to be suspended or taken away from their work very soon?
Indeed, what did these officials really do that prompted such a remarkably strong reaction from the SSS? Is it really true, as published reports are now saying, that the shares of stocks that the officials traded were their own shares? Or, could it be possible that the shares of stocks that were involved in this scandal, those that were traded by the officials in question, belonged to, or are in the name of, the SSS?
In order for the Filipino people to know the truth about this, and assure the nation that the money of the SSS that came from the contributions of its millions of members has not been compromised, a financial audit of sorts should be undertaken right away by the government (through the Commission on Audit, or through private auditing firms) at the SSS, especially on what is called its Reserve Fund.
Never mind if the government will have to spend for this financial audit. What is important here is to assure us that the funds of the SSS, or at least that which is known as its reserve fund that is now valued at P500 billion at present, could still be accounted for. There must be a showing of the true status of SSS funds, so that SSS members could be assured of assistance when they will need it.
On top of this audit, not only the four officials who have been sacked from their positions should be stripped of their positions. As I see it, all top officials of the SSS, from its Chairman and members of its board, its President, Chief Executive Officer, and anyone involved in the handling of SSS funds should also be replaced immediately, while the audit is being conducted.
(E-mail: batasmauricio@yahoo.com)
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