My two sons, with my help, are pension plan policy holders of Philamlife. Their policy will mature in 2005, or seven years from now.

        The press statements of Philamlife are misleading if not mentally dishonest. The problem is not the competence and trustworthiness, nor the present financial soundness of Philamlife.

        That is not disputed or at issue. Those highly paid ads of Philamlife are thus irrelevant and pointless in so far as its policy holders are concerned.

        The problem is when Philamlife is taken over by a new owner and new management which are certain to happen because of the collapse of its parent company, American International Group (AIG).

So, these urgent suggestions:
1. Philamlife must announce/assume it is its legal and normal duty to make sure that its policy holders are in good hands with a trusted new owner.
2. The Securities and Exchange Commission must do likewise, particularly installing measures protective of policy holders, such as transparency and disclosure, public hearings.
3. The Senate to pass measures ASAP to protect policy holders to ensure that they are in good hands with a new owner, particularly to give policy holders the legal right to object to a party which bids to buyPhilamlife. Perhaps make or consider policies as equities with power to vote or veto. Tomes or problems now are different, let’s also act differently, creatively. The classical concept of free market is now outdated.

Moreover, the hopes and dreams, the future of people are at risk or endangered.
4. Philamlife policy holders to organize nation-wide right away so they have a legal personality and a united force to have a crucial say when Philamlife decides to sell itself to a new owner. We, policy holders, even the public at large, have no less an equal concern and interest tthan that of Philamlife or AIG, Assertively, we should rise and fight for our rights and interests.

        The bottom line is that our new owner should be LIBERATOR, not a PREDATOR that will just gobble up the multibillion peso assets of Philamlife.

        We need a trusted and competent one like the present owner and management of Philamlife, and not like those owners of pre-need plans whose plan holders are now sadly on a limb, or holding an empty bag.

        Perhaps this will also deserve space in your newspaper, please Give a voice also to more that million policy holders and their families, aside from thousands of Philamlife employees.

Judge EDMUNDO H. ESCALANTE (Ret.)

Gubat, Sorsogon

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-- Editor