Bacalzo wants cops' retirement benefits ready on last day of service

MANILA, Philippines -  Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Raul Bacalzo said yesterday he wants the retirement benefits of police personnel ready on the day of their retirement.

Bacalzo ordered Director Rey Lañada, chief of the Directorate for Comptrollership, to ensure the availability of funds for all the claims of policemen nationwide.

“We have enough funds for all the claims and as of March 31, all the financial claims and retirement benefits have been settled,” the PNP chief said. “Police officers should receive their benefits and commutation (unused leaves) on the day they retire.”

Bacalzo noted that fiscal reforms initiated by the PNP under the Integrated Transformation Program has allowed the agency to settle its outstanding obligations representing prior year claims in pay and allowan­ ces amounting to P335 million in 2010.

Lañada reported that payment of prior year claims from 2008 to 2010 were funded partly from agency savings in 2009 and 2010.

According to Lañada, P393.4 million from the 2010 agency savings was also used to fund the Performance Enhancement Incentive (PEI) of PNP personnel in 2010.

The PNP is projected to generate similar amount of savings for fiscal year 2011, which will be used to fund the year-end PEI and other government-allocated cash benefits.

At the same time, Lañada said they have made representations with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the early release of P1.45 billion to fund the 2011 midyear bonus of 138,000 PNP personnel.

Bacalzo instructed police officials to expedite processing of the DBM appropriation and to release the midyear bonus without delay as soon as funds are available.

Lañada said the midyear bonus represents 50 percent of the mandatory 13th month pay and other cash benefits. It will be paid in the form of individual checks drawn from the PNP account with the Land Bank of the Philippines.

The other half of the 13th month pay will be released in December, Lañada said.