Albay Rep. Jose Salceda on Sunday said the House ad hoc committee on the military and uniformed personnel, which he chairs, is set to hold its organizational meeting today, assuring there would be no diminution of benefits in pension proposal.
The mandate of the committee includes “all matters related to the MUP pension system, including funding and revenue sources, management, and benefits and contribution scheme,” he said.
The committee would discuss its rules.
Salceda would present his initial observations on the fiscal condition of the military pension system, saying it is “at serious risk of being unfundable in the future.”
“The issue here isn’t whether military and uniformed personnel deserve more or less pension benefits. Everyone who serves the country always deserves more. They deserve to be sure they will have pension, and right now, given the system, we’re not sure the country can afford it in the future,” he said.
“If we can’t fund the pension system in succeeding years, salary increases for current MUP will also be in trouble. So we have to make this work,” he added.
He assured pensioners that “there will be no diminution of benefits. No one will have their current pensions reduced.”
“I’m also working with the Department of Finance and the Bureau of Treasury to see which assets we can use to defray some of the pension costs, so that we won’t have to charge all of it against the national budget or the MUPs,” he cited.
“This is not easy, and this is not popular. But the choice is between some pain now, or a lot of pain in the future. I can’t in good conscience do nothing when it’s obvious that the status quo will cause trouble for future generations. It’s irresponsible to say ‘bahala na’ now and just wish that someday we still have money to pay MUP pensions,” he said.
