EVERY 30th of December we commemorate the death of our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, and the day is aptly called Rizal Day. On this day, we pay tribute to an extraordinary person who is known to be the pride of the Malayan race. He was considered a genius, a man of incredible intellectual power and artistic abilities. While he was opposed to the use of violence, he wrote and spoke against Spanish tyranny, making him an enemy of the state. His martyrdom on December 29, 1896, spurred the Philippine Revolution until June 12, 1898, when the Philippines declared its independence from Spain.
As the dictionary defines the term, a hero is someone who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Rizal had great courage, his achievements were beyond outstanding, and his patriotism and compassion were among his noble qualities. Despite the controversy attending his being declared a national hero, there is no doubt that Dr. Jose Rizal was a brilliant and exceptional person who deserves to be honored as our national hero.
Aside from honoring our national hero this month of December, we also pay tribute to our modern day heroes, the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). December has been declared OFW month and, as such, various agencies of government have lined up several activities to honor our OFWs who usually come home to spend the Christmas holidays with their families.
The Social Security System (SSS) is one of those agencies of government that welcomed our homecoming OFWs. Since 1997 OFWs may be voluntarily covered by SSS. Filipinos working abroad as contractual or resident workers can apply as SSS members, provided they are not yet over 60 years old.
To register as an OFW member, one must accomplish the membership registration form and submit it at the nearest SSS representative office overseas or at the SSS Philippine Overseas Employment Administration branch with any of the following documents: birth certificate, baptismal certificate, driver’s license, Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) card and passport. Monthly contributions will be based on the monthly earnings at the time of registration, computed in Philippine peso, but not lower than P5,000.
To make it more convenient for overseas workers to remit their contributions, the SSS has partnered with accredited banks and remittance centers with branches or tie-ups in the various host countries where most of our OFWs are posted.
OFWs may pay their whole year’s contribution anytime within the year. Another payment option is to remit contributions on a quarterly basis following the schedule for quarterly payments.
The SSS now has dedicated contact channels for OFWs as follows:
E-mail: ofw.relations@sss.gov.ph
Hotline: (632) 364-7796; (632) 364-7798
For more information about the Social Security System (SSS) and its programs, call our 24-hour call center at (632) 920-6446 to 55, Monday to Friday, or send an e-mail to member_relations@sss.gov.ph.
Susie G. Bugante is the vice president for public affairs and special events of the SSS. Send comments about this column to susiebugante.bmirror@gmail.com.