MANILA — Senator Risa Hontiveros condemned what she called “reckless and questionable” investments by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), including a P1-billion placement in an online gambling platform, and called on the Senate to immediately review the pension fund’s investment policies.

In a privilege speech, Hontiveros raised alarm over the preventive suspension of GSIS President and General Manager Jose Arnulfo “Wick” Veloso and six other officials in July, questioning their management of public sector workers’ contributions.

“Yung pondong inaasahan ng mga pampublikong manggagawa na magbunga sa takdang panahon, matapos itabi at hulugan, ay mistulang isinusugal at ipinapatalo ng mga opisyal ng GSIS,” she said.

The senator cited GSIS’s investment of over P1 billion in DigiPlus, an online gambling platform, with shares purchased at P65.30 that have since dropped to P13.68.

“Pinaka-nakakagulat sa lahat, nag-invest ang GSIS ng lagpas P1 billion sa online sugal! … Bakit ang GSIS, todo taya, at ginawang puhunan ang pera ng public employees sa sugalan?” she said.

Hontiveros also warned of a wider pattern of potentially unlawful and high-risk investments by the GSIS leadership, pointing to a ₱1.45-billion subscription agreement with Alternergy Holdings Corporation. She noted that the deal was allegedly executed without board approval and in violation of the pension fund’s internal guidelines.

“Alternergy also appears to be ‘highly overleveraged,’” Hontiveros said, citing a 194% debt-to-equity ratio and low interest coverage. “Paano nakapagdeklara ng ₱40 million cash dividend ang kompanya na iyan, eh puro sila utang, at in financial distress na?”

According to the senator, GSIS has also invested up to ₱2.38 billion in three listed companies that failed to meet profitability and dividend payout standards under the Revised GSIS Act, leading to a ₱251.37-million valuation loss. The Commission on Audit (COA), she noted, has warned that such investments could threaten the actuarial solvency of the pension fund.

“These are, plain and simple, bad bets,” Hontiveros said, also citing GSIS’s continuing stake in debt-laden Del Monte Pacific, which she said has already incurred an estimated paper loss of ₱19.1 million.

The senator called on the Senate to urgently review and possibly amend the GSIS Act to tighten guardrails on investment decisions, increase transparency, and resolve conflicting interpretations between COA and GSIS over investment rules.

“Ang pensyon ng pampublikong sektor, hindi pangsugal,” she said. “GSIS should not waste or gamble away the future of those who serve our nation.”