Age vs mileage

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” – Henry Ford

MANILA, Philippines — The latest row in the Philippine Olympic Committee, a mandatory age limit, is far from over. Lately, the proposal of an age cap of 80 or no age cap at all seemed most palatable for the majority of POC officials voting, though nothing has been decided. For some, it is interpreted as a move to prevent certain older personalities from joining the scheduled POC elections. Is it discriminatory or practical? Elections are mandated every four years, after the regular schedule of the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, national sports associations only have elections every year, which leads to certain complications. But that’s another story.

The retirement age for government employees ranges from 55 to 65. For Philippine National Police officers who are on active or field duty and not assigned to desk work, it is 55. This is often a source of controversy, because by the time one is appointed to the position, he is already in his 50’s. And the more senior class officers are usually given preference, making them even older. It’s hard to initiate reforms with only a short term remaining for the principal sponsor.

For other branches of government service, optional retirement starts at 60, while mandatory retirement is at 65. The premise is that performance may start to suffer, physical endurance may decline, and benefits may increase. Also, it allows for the promotion of younger – and theoretically more dynamic – civil servants. But there are still provisions for hiring retirees to be hired as consultants or on a job order basis.

There have been at least five legislative bills (one in the Lower House, four in the Senate) proposing the lowering of retirement age in various branches of government.

But according to the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), “Life expectancy is expected to rise to 72.7 years in years 2045-2050 (from 67.5 years in 2005-2010), while the number of people aged 60 and above will increase in year 2030. In the Philippines, based on 2015 data, population of those in this age range will balloon by three percent in 2030.”

In countries like Australia, Malaysia and Thailand, retirement ages have actually been raised. Aussies are now only required to retire at age 67.

But the POC is a private entity, and also recognizes the International Olympic Committee as a governing body which rarely gets involved in internal matters. To be able to volunteer time and resources to be in the POC, one has to be reasonably independent financially. This already makes it difficult for national athletes (and even coaches) to be part of the decision-making, as they are dependent on their allowances, which are often split between their personal needs and their families in the provinces. Thus, to be in the POC as an NSA official, you would naturally be older. In some ways, it’s similar to being in a family business or a political family. And assuming that POC officials are former athletes, this increases the likelihood that they will exceed the anticipated average life expectancy.

What happens next? There likely be another meeting to discuss proposed changes or reforms in the POC charter. Any approved provisions will be sent to the IOC for review while the rest of the charter stays as is.  Then it returns to the POC board and then the general assembly for ratification. The Securities and Exchange Commission will then have to approve the ratified changes to make them legal.

Not all young people are competent, and not all old people are infirm. If a general age policy is pushed, it may disqualify certain competent elders from positions of service. Then again, if it is taken on a case by case basis, who gets to decide who is worthy to contribute and who is not? This is a much more contentious, complicated issue than we realize.