PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS will elevate to the Supreme Court the nullification case filed by Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC), Manila Public School Teachers Association (MPSTA) and four individual petitioners against GSIS policies initiated by its President and General Manager Winston Garcia. The decision came up after the Court of Appeals, last month upheld the constitutionality of the Premium-Based Policy (PBP), Automatic Premium Loan Policy (APL) and Claims and Loans Interdependency Policy (CLIP) which according to the GSIS members are unconstitutional and illegal.

“The unjust rules employed by Garcia and his cohorts continue to make the GSIS members suffer, and defeat the very purpose of GSIS. The Supreme Court is our last hope in this legal battle.” Said Benjo Basas, a Caloocan City teacher and the TDC’s national chairperson.

Under the PBP, teachers’ benefits are computed by the GSIS, not on the basis of actual length of service in government or actual premium payments deducted from members, but on the basis of premium payments actually remitted to and posted by the GSIS in its database. The APL allows the GSIS to automatically convert as personal loan of the employees the amount of mandated shares which the government-employer fails to pay, with interest of 6% per annum compounded monthly. And the CLIP subjects a defaulting member’s claims and benefits to compensation against such member’s loan payables to the GSIS. “This, even if the records of the GSIS continue to be in shambles,” Basas added.

The appellate court however, granted the writ of prohibition to stop GSIS from applying the said policies to the petitioners, until there is complete reconciliation of the records of the GSIS and the DepEd.

“We are now going to the Honorable Supreme Court to ask it to annul the policies altogether, and to apply the writ of prohibition not only to the Petitioners, but to all Government employees and retirees who are all suffering from the policies” said lawyer Racquel Ruiz-Dimalanta of Libertas, the counsel for the teachers.  

The teachers question the CA ruling because the prohibition does not apply to all similarly situated government employees even if the case is a class suit.

“It is unjust, illegal and illogical that teachers bear the burden of the failure of the DepEd to remit and the GSIS to post the premium payments and loan repayments automatically deducted from our monthly salary. The employees have no hand in the remitting and posting process and faithfully comply with their payment obligations since their premium payments and loan repayments are automatically deducted from their salaries, yet are made to pay for the inefficiencies of the DepEd and the GSIS” Basas lamented.

The TDC, again challenged Malacanang to act for the immediate resolution of GSIS problems of public school teachers and also investigate the irregularities in the pension fund in the same passion as it criticizes other agencies especially GOCCs.

“During the campaign period, this was the top demand of public school teachers to all the candidates. There was even an instance that then Sen. Aquino made a promise to some of our leaders in Navotas that he will definitely sack Winston Garcia if he wins. Now, almost two months after he took the office, we still wait for a statement from him denouncing the lavish lives of GSIS executives as he does in MWSS and other agencies.” Basas lamented.

Teachers however said that they still trust the sincerity of the president on his “Walang Corrupt” and “Matuwid na Landas” principles but reminded him to further prove this in the case of GSIS.

Some 300 public school teachers under the banner of the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) and Manila Public School Teachers Association (MPSTA) will assist Ruiz-Dimalanta in filing the case with the high court tomorrow afternoon.

Meanwhile, teachers who will be holding classes in the afternoon will show their solidarity through wearing of black arm band. Jason Rivera, president of Bagong Barangay Elementary School will lead his 64 colleagues in wearing the armband to symbolize their mourning over the death of their benefits under the GSIS. #