Bicam panel sustains allowance hike for military troops to P350 daily

Philippine troops on parade on the 81st anniversary of the AFP in 2016. —File photo from the Philippine Daily Inquirer 

MANILA, Philippines — The bicameral conference committee, which is threshing out differences in the House of Representatives and the Senate’s versions of the proposed 2025 budget, has sustained the allocation for a higher subsistence allowance of military troops, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said on Wednesday.

The provision that would allow for a P350 per day subsistence allowance of troops in 2025 — up from the current P150 — was kept in the final version of the General Appropriations Bill (GAB),  Romualdez announced in an ambush interview after the bicam committee meeting earlier.

The bicam panel also approved its conference committee report on the P6.352 trillion proposed budget for 2025.

“It’s very good news that we have formalized the increase of our soldier’s daily subsistence allowance.  We increased it from P150 to P350, which is going to be maintained and fully supported for our soldiers,” Romualdez told reporters in a mix of Filipino and English.

“That’s why we are happy for the high morale of the soldiers — our men and women in uniform in the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] — as we will continue with the increase in daily subsistence allowance from P150 to P350. That translates to almost P10,500 monthly,” he added.

According to Romualdez, this will mean a lot to the men and women in uniform.

“This is a big step forward in showing our full support for the men and women in uniform. It recognizes their sacrifices and the sacrifices of their families who stand behind them,” Romualdez said in a separate statement.

“The additional allowance is meant not only to support our soldiers but also to acknowledge their sacrifices for the country,” he added.

READ: Romualdez: Marcos admin backs AFP modernization, soldiers’ welfare

House advocacy

Increasing the subsistence allowance of soldiers has been an advocacy of Romualdez and other House leaders.

Last August 9, Romualdez assured the AFP that its budget for 2025 would get support, noting that the House would increase the subsistence allowance given to military personnel.

In his speech during the fellowship of House officials with AFP officials and personnel at the Naval Operating Base in Subic, Zambales, on Friday, Romualdez said the House would increase the subsistence allowance by more than two times — from P150 per personnel to P350 in 2025.

“Now, I’ll give you this brief announcement that I hope will make you happy. We, the House of Representatives, have already undertaken that in the forthcoming budget, we shall now include a P15-billion package that will increase, will more than double your P150 subsistence allowance to P350,” said Speaker Romualdez, eliciting applause and cheer from the soldiers.

The higher subsistence allowance was also part of the discussions between Romualdez, other House leaders, and officials from the AFP when they met early in December.