100% pay hike for soldiers, cops in 2018

The administration would be able to fulfill President Duterte’s promise to double the salaries of soldiers and policemen one-and-a-half years after he repeatedly promised it last year.

In radio and television interviews this week, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said delivering on the promise is “doable” in 2018.

He projected the uniformed personnel of the military and the police would receive approximately double their pay starting in January next year.

Shortly after assuming office in June, the President visited military and police camps. He repeatedly assured soldiers and policemen that they would receive a 100 percent increase in pay by last month.

“You look at your pay envelope in December, you will have double what you are receiving,” Duterte told them.

When it became obvious that Malacañang could not deliver on Duterte’s promise, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said the President raised false hopes among soldiers and policemen.

“He’s just a big talker who makes empty promises,” Trillanes said.

But Diokno said the 100-percent doable increase in 2018 would be a combination of an adjustment in basic salary and additional allowances.

He said the increase would include the pay increments uniformed personnel would receive under the government’s four-year salary adjustment program, and incentives the President ordered granted toward the latter part of 2016, including additional combat pay.

Diokno said one reason the 100-percent pay hike would be in the form of allowances is to avoid increasing the pension of military and police retirees.

He explained that under the law, pension goes up once the basic pay of those in the active service is increased.

Diokno pointed out the government wants to discontinue this practice, since pension benefits are now eating up a huge chunk of the military budget.

He projected that if the practice continues, up to 70 percent of the military budget would go to pensioners.

This would be unfair to those in the active service, Diokno said.

Another reason the budget chief did not disclose is if a large part of the 100-percent increase is in the form of an adjustment in basic pay instead of allowances, it would trigger a demand for a similar hike from other state workers like teachers.

Already, public school teachers, who comprise the single biggest sector in the bureaucracy, are clamoring for an increase in allowances, saying they too, like soldiers, are doing a noble mission.

The four- year salary upgrading covers all state officials and employees.

The lowest- paid teacher, who holds Salary Grade 11, now receives an adjusted basic monthly salary of P19,620 and will have a total of P2,205 in annual increments by 2019, when the upgrading program ends. His or her basic pay will go up to P20,754.

The lowest- paid soldiers and policemen will get less, since they are lower in pay grade than teachers. They get the equivalent pay for Salary Grades 8-9, or between P16,000 and P17,000. They receive more than P20,000, including allowances.