Senator Imee Marcos called on the Social Security System (SSS), Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), PAG-IBIG, and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to implement a temporary suspension of collections.

Marcos is also pushing for a loan moratorium to ease the mounting burden on Filipinos brought about by the relentless surge in fuel prices and basic commodities.

This is amid the country's struggle after the President declared a national state of energy emergency.

The senator said workers, farmers, fisherfolk, and small business owners are the hardest hit by the crisis, as rising oil prices drive up the cost of transportation and basic goods. She urged the various agencies to provide payment relief.

“The crisis in gasoline and crude oil adds to the daily burden of every Filipino, especially our workers. It is only right that we give them at least a month or more of relief in paying their obligations,” Marcos said.

“Let us suspend salary deductions for now and release their wages in full, so they may somehow keep pace with the galloping rise in the cost of living,” she added.

The senator further stressed that such measures have already proven effective during the pandemic and in the aftermath of past calamities.

“This is an evolving crisis, which appears to be dragging on longer than anticipated. Let us do everything we can to lighten the burden on our people,” she said.