Manila cops laud SEC ruling on pre-need firm

Manila police officers hailed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) yesterday for issuing an order stopping pre-need firm Primanila Plans Inc. from collecting payments and amortizations from planholders.

A number of Manila police officers have been complaining that Primanila continues to collect premiums despite failing to pay at least 100 planholders whose plans have matured. There are reports that Primanila is bankrupt.

“We have long been asking concerned units at the PNP (Pilippine National Police) to withhold the premium deductions of our colleagues since, like us, they will also be left holding an empty bag upon the maturity of their plan,” said Senior Police Officer 3 Ed Martinez, whose matured pension plan remains unpaid for almost three years now.

Primanila came under fire from SEC for selling pre-need plans without prior registration and the necessary license, violating the Securities Regulation Code and the new rules on the registration and sale of pre-need plans. The SEC has issued a cease-and-desist order (CDO) stopping Primanila, whose clients are mostly PNP personnel, from soliciting investments from the public and collecting payments and amortizations from planholders. SEC has also given Primanila president Eduardo Madrid five days from receipt of the order to file a motion for the lifting of the CDO. – Nestor Etolle