An official from the Social Security System (SSS) said on Tuesday, Feb. 16, that a P1,000 pension hike for retirees is not possible for now.

"Sa ngayon po napakahirap i-consider nyan. Ayon po sa result ng aming actuarial evaluation, hindi po kakayanin sa ngayon na magbigay tayo ng P1,000 increase (Right now it's very difficult to consider. Based on the result of our actuarial evaluation, we will not be able to provide a P1,000 increase at this time)," SSS Vice President for Public Affairs Fernan Nicolas said in an interview with DZMM.
However, Nicolas added that the SSS extended its calamity loans to pensioners affected by the Typhoon "Ulysses" until Feb. 24.
"Ang pag-utang is online. Mag-log in lang sa inyong my.sss . Kailangan i-enroll nila yung savings nila sa my.sss at doon po natin i-credit yung proceeds (They can now borrow money online. Just log in to their my.sss accounts, enroll their savings to my.sss. and we will credit the proceeds there)," he noted.
In March 2020, the House Committee on Government Enterprises and Privatization adopted three House Joint Resolutions (HJRs) that aim to increase the monthly SSS pension by another P1,000 to boost financial assistance to Filipino retirees.
The first tranche of the pension increase amounting to P1,000 has been implemented since January 2017, bringing the minimum monthly pension from P2,200 to P3,400.