ILOILO CITY – Retired policemen who served under the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the defunct Philippine Constabulary (PC) slammed Congress for ignoring their plight.
RETIRED Police Lt. Angel C. Sales (right) with Mayor Leopoldo N. Bataoil (center) of Lingayen, Pangasinan and retired Major Gen. Van D. Luspo during the 20th regional anniversary of the Philippine Constabulary Association Inc. in Iloilo City. (Tara Yap)
“We have served the country and our people. The government will deny us what is due to us,” said retired Police Lt. Angel C. Sales, member of the board of trustees and vice president for the Visayas of PNP Retirees Association Inc. (PRAI).
Sales, who also serves as regional president of the Philippine Constabulary Association Inc. (PCAI)-Region 6, is distributing a manifesto against the reduction of military and uniformed personnel (MUP) pension during the recent 20th anniversary and regional reunion here.
The manifesto reiterated their opposition to the proposal of Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno to cut their pension.
Diokno had earlier claimed that there will be fiscal collapse if MUP is not reformed.
The manifesto was also distributed to Eastern Visayas and Central Visayas after the House Ad Hoc Committee approved the bill proposing the reduction of MUP pension.
Sales if the government makes it a priority bill, it will have a negative impact on almost 17,000 retired police officers across the Visayas.
He told Manila Bulletin that PRAI is taking cue from the letter of retired Vice Admiral Ariston delos Reyes to Iloilo Rep. Raul “Boboy” Tupas, chairman of House Committee on National Defense and Security.
Sales said they were not even consulted by the Ad Hoc Committee.
He said PRAI members are united with uniform services in the country in objecting Diokno’s proposal for pension contribution as MUP pension is already non-contributory as stipulated in Article XVI, Section 7, of the 1987 Constitution.
PRAI headed by retired Major Gen. Van D. Luspo wants to continue the indexing of MUP to the prevailing pay rate of those in the active service.
It is working with retirees from the Philippine Marines, the Philippine Army, the Philippine Air Force, the Philippine Navy, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor).