DND: Exclude new entrants from pension contribution

The Department of National Defense (DND) said that new entrants in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) should be excluded from the proposed mandatory contribution for military and uniformed personnel (MUP).

The DND, through Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, relayed this during the Senate plenary deliberations on the department’s P233.27 billion proposed budget for 2024.

“The stand of the DND right now is even more noble because ang stand nila is talagang totally non-contributory, kahit na ‘yung new entrant, walang pension,” Dela Rosa said.

Dela Rosa, who defended the department’s budget at the Senate, explained that the AFP has existing assets that could fund the pensions of new entrants, active and retired military personnel.

This, however, would only cover the AFP and not the other law enforcement agencies.

“According to the Secretary, with the present resources that the AFP has right now ay talagang kung isama mo ‘yung lahat ng uniformed personnel baka hindi kakayanin. Hanggang sa AFP lang yon,” he said.

“Maybe, it will take a secretary like [Defense Secretary Gilber Teodoro Jr.] to look for a solution as far as the other uniformed personnel is concerned,” he added.

Teodoro earlier said President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s first marching order was to continue to reform the MUP pension system.

In May, Marcos pushed for “self-regenerating” pension plans for both the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP) in an effort to avoid a scenario in which the funds would be depleted.

The economic team, headed by Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, had warned of the consequences of the pension payments, with the total yearly payouts expected to hit the P1-trillion mark by 2035 from P213 billion in 2023.

Under its proposal, a technical working group led by the DOF called for MUP in active service to contribute 5% of their monthly pay, and new entrants to contribute 9% of their basic salary and longevity pay.

In September, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading a bill reforming the MUP pension system. The measure proposed that new MUP entrants will have to give a mandatory monthly contribution, which is 9% of their salary, with the national government contributing 12%.

The Senate has yet to release its version of the new MUP pension system bill.—LDF, GMA Integrated News