The Commission on Audit said the failed remittance deprives affected teachers of loan access and annual dividends from their contributions. Photo from Canva
Teachers will have to wait before they could tap into the loan facility and earn dividend payouts from their premium contributions at the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). This, as the Department of Education (DepEd) failed to complete the transfer of P3.1 billion contributions and loan amortizations to the state-run pension fund.
“The failure by the DepEd Offices to remit the premium contributions deprived their employees of the opportunity to avail of loan privileges, and earn yearly dividends and such other benefits offered to all GSIS members thereby causing undue injury to them,” the Commission on Audit (COA) said in its report on the DepEd’s 2023 financial performance.
The oversight affects teachers and non-teaching staff across the central office and 12 regional offices.
Region 8 reported the highest amount of unremitted dues at P669.7 million, followed by Region 9 at P591.9 million.
However, COA recognized that some regions have already begun to reduce their dues. Region 3 has decreased its balance from P518 million to P36 million, and Region 4B lowered its balance from P90 million to P75.95 million. Region 11 also reduced its balance from P71.9 million to P27.6 million.
COA made several recommendations to address the situation, including imposing sanctions on employees responsible for the non-remittance and reconciling accounts due to GSIS. DepEd said it would comply with the recommendations.
The department plans to remit all withheld contributions and loan payments to GSIS and establish a committee to address the backlog of unremitted balances.
DepEd also mentioned that its finance offices have been timely in their monthly remittances, except for those rejected by the GSIS due to issues needing further clarification.
