How much do senators earn per month? Miriam says as much as P5 million By: InterAksyon August 28, 2013 4:27 PMMANILA, Philippines - Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said Wednesday she will file a resolution seeking to have the monthly income of senators posted on the Senate website. A statement from her office said Santiago, in her keynote speech, at the 30th annual convention of the Philippine Blood Coordinating Council, pointed out that each senator makes much more than the P90,000 wage listed under the Salary Standardization Act because each lawmaker also receives income from other Senate funds. Among the other sources of income are chairmanships of oversight committees or membership in the Commission on Appointments. She also said a senator elected as an official of the chamber receives much more than his or her colleagues. Citing the Commission on Audit’s 2011 report, Santiago said that, aside from their personal income as lawmakers, then Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile received P71.7 million, then President Pro-Tempore Jinggoy Estrada got P9.3 million, then Majority Floor Leader Vicente Sotto made P9.3 million, and then Minority Floor Leader Alan Peter Cayetano received P10.2 million. But she added that a senator could also make from P2.7-4.5 million from discretionary funds. “If we add up all these sources of income, a senator could be making P4M to P5M monthly. And this does not include a kickback of 10 percent to 50 percent from the pork barrel,” Santiago said. “In truth, Congress has devised a labyrinthine method of paying individual senators and congressmen very much more than their official salaries,” she noted. The outspoken senator suggested that the logical continuation of Monday’s #MillionPeopleMarch for the abolition of the pork barrel should be a demand for the publication on a government website of the monthly income of public officers, including the highest ranking. For lawmakers, she said, this should include details of all discretionary funds they receive. Santiago said such a program could take its cue from the Open Government Initiative begun in 2009 by the administration of US President Barack Obama, where government information is made available on the Data.gov website. She also suggested that the proposed Freedom of Information Act include a government dashboard through which the public can track discretionary funds and pork barrel projects. interaksyon/article/69560/miriam-wants-senators-monthly-take-posted-online
Posted on: Wed, 25 Sep 2013 21:29:39 +0000
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