Marcos: Just right to increase pay of military and uniformed personnel
President Marcos on Wednesday justified as just and proper the looming increase in the base pay of military and uniformed personnel (MUP), which will be implemented in three tranches beginning in 2026.
In a video statement posted on his social media accounts, Marcos recognized the sacrifices of MUP particularly when the country was slammed by consecutive calamities in the past months.
“Our MUP are the first to answer the call of duty, even when it involves threats to their safety. On land, water or in the air, you do not hesitate to sacrifice your safety for the sake of every Filipino,” the President said in the video.
Up to Congress
Despite the pronouncement from President Marcos, the authority to modify the base pay schedule of MUP is under the mandate of Congress, which shall issue a Joint Resolution. The increase in the base pay of MUP will result in increases in their other allowances and bonuses that are computed as a percentage of base pay, such as longevity pay, midyear bonus and yearend bonus.
Agencies included in the MUP base pay increase are the Department of National Defense, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Philippine Coast Guard, the Bureau of Corrections, and the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority.
The increases themselves will be subsistence allowances that are converted into cash and added to the base pay of the MUP. The program is supposed to last three years beginning in 2026.
Marcos said it will be implemented in three tranches: Jan. 1, 2026; Jan. 1, 2027; and Jan. 1, 2028. But Malacañang is still working on the order.
