Days after the Marawi City liberation, the House of Representatives last Sunday vowed to prioritize the passage of a resolution increasing by 100 percent the salary of police and military personnel.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. Karlo Alexei B. Nograles of Davao City said President Duterte has already endorsed to the House of Representatives and Senate a draft resolution that would make official the 100-percent salary increase for police and military personnel.
Nograles said the leadership of the lower chamber guaranteed the approval of the resolution once Congress resumes sessions on November 13. Lawmakers are currently on a month-long break from work starting last October 14.
“This is proper procedure since Congress, particularly the House of Representatives, possesses the power of the purse, or the power to allocate funds for government expenditure,” he said.
“The House of Representatives led by Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez has been keeping a close eye on the resolution for the salary hike, and we guarantee to make President Duterte’s promise a reality,” Nograles added.
He said the salary hike is slated for implementation beginning January 2018.
Nograles added the money will be sourced from the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund (MPBF). Specifically, P24.9 billion from the P84.4 billion MPBF for 2018 will be tapped for this purpose.
He said the amount is separate from the P61.4 billion that has been allocated for the third tranche of pay hikes for government workers under the Salary Standardization Law.
Duterte first bared his intention of doubling police and soldiers’ pay in August last year.
Last week, the President declared Marawi’s liberation from Maute terrorists, who launched a siege and subsequent occupation of the city on May 23. The ISIS-inspired fighters reportedly numbered 800 to 1,000.
“Our men and women in uniform proved in the battle of Marawi that they deserve this salary hike. They managed to contain the threat posed by Maute terrorists within the city, neutralize its keys leaders and retake the city,” Nograles said.
Preceding this declaration were reports that Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon and Maute Group head Omar Maute had been killed. It should be noted that Hapilon is a wanted terrorist by the United States government.
“Kudos to our troops for getting the job done. They showed that they are capable of neutralizing the world’s most dreaded terrorists and bandits. They deserve all the additional benefits coming their way under the Duterte administration,” Nograles said.
Retirement benefit
The House committees on government enterprises and privatization and on national defense and security’s technical working group (TWG) has now started consolidating two measures seeking to reform the retirement benefit and pension system of the seven major uniformed services of the government.
TWG Head Rep. Mark O. Go of Baguio City said the bills aim to address the many concerns of the major uniformed services of the government.
The seven major uniformed services are the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Bureau of Corrections and National Mapping and Resource Information Authority.
The TWG is harmonizing House Bills 1137 and 5673 filed by Reps. Gary Alejano of Magdalo and Francisco Jose Matugas of Surigao del Norte, respectively. The bills are both titled “Unified Uniformed Personnel Retirement Benefits and Pension Reform Act.”
The bills provide that existing retirees and future retirees of the uniformed services shall be entitled to receive a monthly retirement pay equivalent to 2.5 percent for each year of active service rendered, but not exceeding 90 percent of the monthly base and longevity pay of the grade next higher than the permanent grade last held.
The measures said all new entrants, who at the time of their actual retirement, are eligible to receive retirement benefits and pension under existing laws applicable to the uniformed services, shall be entitled to receive their lump sum benefit equivalent to three years within one month of their effective date of retirement.
All uniformed personnel who are disabled in the line of duty shall be eligible to receive a monthly pension, the rates of which shall be determined by the respective department concerned, the bills added.
The bills also seek to provide a new fund-sourcing scheme for the unified retirees’ pension and benefits that is sustainable in the long term.
They mandate the creation of a Uniformed Personnel Retirement Fund (UPRF) to be managed by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) for the sustainability of the retirement benefits and pension of uniformed personnel.
The GSIS shall create a new department, which shall exclusively administer the UPRF.
The measures also provide that it shall be mandatory for new entrants to contribute a percentage of their monthly compensation as personal share and for the national government to contribute a corresponding share sourced from the general appropriations for the maintenance of the UPRF.
The additional funding for the maintenance of the UPRF shall be sourced from the sale or disposition of public lands, as may be authorized by the President.