Senate urges Aquino to cap
excessive perks

THE Senate yesterday urged President Aquino to suspend the “excessive and unwarranted” allowances, bonuses, incentives and other perks received by executives of government-owned and –controlled corporations.

A resolution filed by Sen. Franklin Drilon, chairman of the Senate finance committee, also asked that the “directors’ fees, bonuses, stock options, allowances and other benefits of the representatives of the GOCCs and GFIs in the governing boards and subsidiaries where the said GOCCs and GFIs have investments or outstanding loans be turned over to the concerned GOCCs and GFIs.”

Drilon said the committees have found that officials and governing boards of various GOCCs and GFIs, such as the Metropolitan Water and Sewerage System, Government Service Insurance System, Social Security System, the Development Bank of the Philippines and Clark Development Authority, among others, “have been granting themselves unwarranted allowances, bonuses, incentives, stock options and other benefits.”

“Among the irregular and abusive practices uncovered during the inquiry were: (a) the representatives of the Social Security Commission (SSC) to the board of directors of Philex Mining earned, in addition to their bonuses, some P55 million by way of stock options; (b) three SSS representatives in the board of directors of Union Bank earned P46 million in bonuses, or around P15 million each; (c) the MWSS, despite incurring a loss of P3.5 billion in 2008, declared a bonus of P5 million for its board members in 2009 and granted 25 bonuses in one year; and (d) GOCCs have failed to comply with the requirement of R.A. 7656 to remit 50 percent of its net earnings to the national government,” the resolution said.

Drilon said the proposed suspension of bonuses and other excessive perks would only cover the board of directors or trustees and will not affect the salaries and allowances of the management and rank and file of the corporations.

Last year, Drilon said more than P15 billion in subsidies from the national government was given to the GOCCs despite excessive bonuses and perks being enjoyed by their executives.

Drilon also revealed that outgoing SSS chairman Thelmo Cunanan received a total of P132.65 million compensation as a member of the board of directors of Philex Mining, First Philippine Holdings, and Union Bank from 2007 to 2010.

Drilon said the next Senate investigation on Monday will focus on the investments of GOCCs and GFIs, the GSIS and SSS in private companies.