A group of education workers on Saturday, October 18, joined calls for the resignation of Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) President and General Manager Jose Arnulfo “Wick” A. Veloso over reported losses amounting to P8.8 billion and alleged questionable investments in gambling-related companies.

In a statement, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines expressed support for the GSIS Board of Trustees’ move to seek Veloso’s removal, saying his leadership has “betrayed the trust” of government workers who rely on GSIS for their retirement benefits.

“The GSIS trustees are absolutely correct in demanding Veloso's resignation,” ACT Chairperson Ruby Bernardo said. “His continued stay in office is an outright insult to all government employees, including public school teachers, whose retirement security depends on the sound management of GSIS funds,” she added.

Bernardo stressed that public school teachers comprise the largest group of GSIS members, with nearly a million educators contributing a portion of their salaries to the pension system.

"Public school teachers make up the biggest share of GSIS members,” Bernardo said. “Nearly a million educators regularly contribute a portion of their meager salaries to this fund, hoping it will secure their future after decades of service,” she added.

Bernardo noted that the losses are especially painful for teachers who have long faced excessive loan interest rates and financial difficulties with GSIS.

“Under Veloso’s watch, billions of our pesos have been squandered,” she said. “This is not just a financial loss but also a robbery of our hopes, our sacrifices, and our hard-won retirement benefits,” she added.

Bernardo remarked that the losses dealt a heavy blow to teachers who have long struggled with costly loans and financial challenges under GSIS.

“Hindi katanggap-tanggap sa aming mga overworked at underpaid na nga na mga guro ang malaman ang malaking pagkalugi na ito (It is unacceptable for us teachers—who are already overworked and underpaid—to learn about such huge losses),” Bernardo said.

She alleged that GSIS has long been burying teachers in debt through excessive and unreasonable interest charges. “Malinaw na pagpapabaya ito at pagbalewala sa pawis, dugo, at pagod ng mga guro at kawani ng gobyerno (This clearly shows negligence and disregard for the hard work, sacrifices, and dedication of teachers and government employees),” she added.

ACT also slammed Veloso for what it called “morally reprehensible and financially reckless” investments amounting to P1.45 billion in gambling-related companies.

“Prior to these staggering losses, Veloso already showed poor judgment by investing P1.45 billion of our pension funds in gambling-related companies,” Bernardo said.

“This is morally reprehensible and financially reckless—our hard-earned contributions should not be used to prop up an industry that destroys families and communities,” she added.

The teachers’ group urged the GSIS Board to conduct a full audit of the pension fund’s losses and all related investments.

"As the largest group of GSIS contributors, we teachers have every right to demand accountability,” Bernardo said. “We work tirelessly educating the nation's children, often with inadequate resources and support—the least we deserve is competent and ethical management of our pension funds,” she added.

The group demanded a comprehensive accounting of how the massive losses occurred, along with a thorough review of all questionable investments—including those involving gambling companies—and immediate steps to recover the funds.

It also called for concrete safeguards to prevent future mismanagement, emphasizing that the GSIS must fulfill its mandate to serve its members, not engage in dubious investments that put their future at risk.

“Ang bawat piso na nawala o ginamit sa maling paraan ay galing sa bulsa ng mga kawani ng gobyerno na nagpapagal araw-araw para sa bayan (Every peso lost or misused comes from the pockets of government employees who work hard every day for the nation),” Bernardo said, stressing that this “must not be ignored.”

“Panagutin si Veloso, bawiin ang nawalang pondo, at itigil ang paggamit sa kontribusyon ng mga guro at kawani ng bayan sa maanomalyang paraan (Hold Veloso accountable, recover the lost funds, and stop the anomalous use of teachers’ and government workers’ contributions),” she concluded.