Legarda: 2017 Budget Funds Increase in Combat Duty and Incentive Pay of Cops, Soldiers

Senator Loren Legarda today said that uniformed personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will continue to receive their increased combat duty and incentive pay under the 2017 national budget.

Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, said that P12.1 billion has been allocated under the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund for the said purpose.

“We know very well that our soldiers and policemen deserve to receive remuneration commensurate to their enormous and dangerous task,” Legarda said.

She added that, “We cannot overemphasize the value of the arduous mission they have to undertake in order to protect the people and the State from lawless violence, invasion, rebellion, terrorist acts and other activities that might affect public safety and bring harm to the independence of our nation.”

Only last year, qualified members of the AFP were still receiving Combat Duty Pay worth P500 per month and Combat Incentive Pay worth P150 per day of actual combat but not exceeding P1,500 per Operations Order or Fragmentary Order.

Meanwhile, qualified members of the PNP used to receive a maximum of P340 per month as Combat Duty Pay.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s Executive Order No. 3 issued in September 2016 mandates that the Combat Duty Pay of qualified members of AFP and PNP will be fixed at P3,000 per month; while Combat Incentive Pay will increase to P300 per day but not exceeding P3,000 per month.