The Home Development Mutual Fund, also known as Pag-IBIG Fund, is appealing to the 590 barangays in this province to appropriate funds for their counterpart in the village officials’ membership contributions.

Donald Alton Cahilo, Pag-IBIG Fund Antique branch manager, said in an interview Thursday that they are conducting information dissemination as well as sending letters to the Sangguniang Barangays in Antique for such request.

“Once the barangay officials become members of the Pag-IBIG Fund, they could also enjoy the benefits such as applying for calamity loans or housing loans,” Cahilo said.

He said that so far, the barangay officials in the towns of Anini-y and San Remigio are already members of the Pag-IBIG and are now availing of the benefits.

Cahilo recalled that the Antique Provincial Board approved Ordinance Number 2017-133 in 2017, requiring all barangay government units in the province to appropriate employer counterpart for the Pag-IBIG Fund contributions of village officials.

The ordinance covers the incumbent barangay chairpersons, council members, Sangguniang Kabataan chairpersons, barangay secretaries, and treasurers.

It stated that all Sangguniang Barangays, being the employers, shall appropriate Pag-IBIG Fund contributions in their yearly annual budget corresponding to the aggregate total Pag-IBIG Fund contributions of the officials.

The ordinance further provides that the covered employees and employers shall contribute to Pag-IBIG Fund PHP100 out of their monthly compensation/honoraria and another PHP100 from the barangay fund for the employer’s share or a total of PHP200 monthly contributions.

The barangay treasurers are tasked to remit the contributions of the barangay officials to the Pag-IBIG Fund office at the Robinson’s Place Antique in San Jose de Buenavista. (PNA)