Speaker orders review of allowances of House execs

Happy days may soon be over for 69 House officials receiving fat allowances.

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. ordered yesterday a review of the amounts of monthly stipends that these officials are getting in line with President Arroyo’s directive that huge government salaries and other remuneration be cut.

Noel Albano, De Venecia’s spokesman, said the Speaker, who is on a two-day visit in Hawaii, heard the news about the fat allowances and promptly ordered a review.

"We just inherited these rates from predecessors, but the Speaker wants the leadership to take a second look at these allowances in line with the President’s policy of austerity," he said, adding that he himself wouldn’t mind taking a cut in allowance.

Albano heads the public relations and information department (PRID). He holds the rank of deputy secretary general. He succeeded Victoria Loanzon, who was getting P47,503.33 a month in allowances on top of her salary of about P31,000.

Loanzon has resigned and joined former Speaker and now Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr.

She was one of the eight deputies of secretary general Roberto Nazareno, who is getting P85,733 on top of his P35,00 basic pay.

The seven other officials with the rank of deputy secretary general are receiving P56,733.32 each, excluding their salary. They are Ofelia Cruz, Rafael de Guzman, Lourdes Santos, Bayani Fabic, Romulo Neri, Cecilia David, and Arlene Dada Arnaldo.

Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Lakas, Surigao del Norte), chairman of the House accounts committee, said the rates are "ceilings."

"Those are ceilings which may not be reached since the allowances are subject to strict liquidation," he said.

Barbers welcomed De Venecia’s order for a review, saying that amounts may suffer some reasonable reductions.

He agreed with some employees that in principle, allowances should not exceed basic pay.

He said as chairman of the accounts committee, the panel that manages House funds, he has strictly imposed a policy of austerity to generate savings.

Barbers added that allowances could be one area that the committee could look at to save money "without sacrificing service."