Press Release
August 18, 2014

Senate passes bill increasing subsistence allowance of soldiers,
uniformed personnel

Senate Joint Resolution No. 2 or the resolution increasing the subsistence allowance of soldiers and other uniformed personnel has been passed on Third and final reading in the Senate.

According to Senator Antonio "Sonny" F. Trillanes IV, principal author and sponsor of the said measure, "By providing a modest increase on the existing subsistence allowance of our uniformed personnel, we hope to uplift their morale and recognize their sacrifices for this country."

Under the said Resolution, the daily Subsistence Allowance of all military and uniformed personnel will be increased from P90 to P150, effective 1 January 2015. Particularly, those covered are the officers, enlisted personnel candidate soldiers, probationary second lieutenants, and civilian active auxiliaries of the Armed Forces of the Philippines; the commissioned and non-commissioned personnel of the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology; the cadets of the Philippine Military Academy and the Philippine National Police Academy; and the Philippines Coast Guard.

During his sponsorship speech, Trillanes lamented that despite the significant role of the said personnel, they remain to be among the measly paid public servants in the country. He recounted the stories of soldiers and policemen who are normally assigned to distant places and who usually leave their ATM cards with their family. Their salaries and other benefits go directly into said ATM cards for their families and it is only the 90-pesos per day subsistence allowance that is left for the soldiers or policemen. Hence, they have to scrimp and learn to live on said paltry sum for their daily subsistence and sustenance and for all their personal needs.

"I urge our counterparts in the House of Representatives to immediately act on the measure so that this will be implemented on 1 January 2015," said Trillanes, Chairman of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security.

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