The Senate Committee on National Defense and Security has included an amendment in the substitute measure proposing reforms in the military and uniformed personnel (MUP) pension system that would require only new entrants to give contributions for their pension.
Sen. Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, chairman of the said panel, said the measure seeks to mandate only new entrants in the country’s military and uniformed services to contribute or have pension deductions in their monthly pay.
“This means that whatever is being enjoyed by the current pensioners, and whatever is expected by those currently in active service, will still be enjoyed and received by them,” Estrada said of Senate Bill No. 2501, now under Committee Report No. 173.
“In fact, for some of them, the retirement pay will be higher by five percentage points,” he added.
The senator assured that the measure will not amend or tinker with the current pension system of the retired personnel.
“Wala rin pong magiging pagbaba sa inaasahang pensyon ng kasalukuyang mga nasa serbisyo (there would also be no changes in the expected pension of those who are currently in the service),” the veteran lawmaker stressed.
Amendments to the MUP pension system was sought by the Marcos administration as a means to thwart a possible fiscal collapse in the coming years. However, reports of reforming the MUP pension has stirred uneasiness among the MUPs as some threatened to avail of an early retirement.
But Estrada said the Senate version of the bill also guarantees a more sustainable and secured pension regime.
The Senate version seeks the creation of separate trust funds for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and another for those in the Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), and commissioned officers in the National Mapping and Resources Information Authority (NAMRIA).
Under the Senate version, the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) would be the agency mandated to oversee the trust fund committees of the military and uniformed services.
Once the bill is enacted into law, those who will enter the service after the enactment of the bill, will be required to give seven (7) percent of their base pay and longevity pay, while the rest of those in the uniformed services will be nine (9) percent, with the government contributing 14 percent and 12 percent respectively, to their pension funds.
Once in place, the retirement pay will be increased to a maximum of 90 percent of the base pay and longevity pay for all MUP, from the current 75 percent and 85 percent.
Estrada said that while there would be no automatic indexation for new entrants, there will be annual adjustments in pension depending on the fiscal or economic conditions.
“I sincerely hope that this will be the Congress that finally addresses this pressing concern affecting not only the fiscal position of the country but also the stability of the defense establishment and the uniformed services as persistent talks of reforming the pension system stir trepidation and uneasiness among their ranks,” the lawmaker said.