Senate bill wants higher pay for lawmakers, other govt employees

(Updated 3:59 p.m., May 1) Will higher pay discourage lawmakers and other government officials from engaging in corrupt practices? Senator Antonio Trillanes IV thinks it will.

 

Trillanes on Wednesday pushed for the passage of a bill that will hike monthly salaries of senators and members of the House of Representatives from the current P90,000 to over P350,000.

 

In Senate Bill 1689, the administration senator also sought to increase the base pay of all civil servants, from those holding lowest government ranks such as administrative aides, to the president of the Philippines.

 

Trillanes' measure likewise proposed an across-the-board salary raise for all military and uniformed personnel in the country.

 

The senator, who chairs the Senate committee on civil service and government reorganization, said he views his bill as an anti-corruption measure. 

 

“Due to the competitive compensation package, our public servants will no longer consider resorting to unscrupulous activities in order to augment their meager income, and, instead, focus their efforts and energy to public service, curbing corruption and cutting red tape," Trillanes said in a statement.

 

The Senate bill is being pushed at the height of allegations that certain lawmakers pocketed millions of pesos in kickbacks from the alleged pork barrel scam, allegedly engineered by detained businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles.

 

Senators Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada, as well as some past and current House members, are currently facing plunder charges before the Office of the Ombudsman for allegedly benefiting from the supposed anomaly.

 

Trillanes' bill needs to undergo committee and plenary deliberations and voting before it can be approved by the Senate. — Andreo Calonzo with Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK/RSJ, GMA News