Long overdue assistance

This administration has repeatedly called for unity and for us to move forward in our march to progress and prosperity which they claimed has already started and is just around the corner. But its appeal seems to be just exactly the opposite of what it is doing. It is noticeably trying to improve its continuously sagging credibility by adopting moves supposedly intended to alleviate our hardships but are actually intended to divert public attention away from the various anomalies and scandals besetting it and to cow into silence its staunchest critics.

This is best exemplified by its moves against Meralco, a sister company of ABS-CBN, its most vocal critic. The political undertone of these moves is so evident because it is spearheaded by diehard administration allies in the Senate led by a provocative and acerbic tongued Senator who conveniently shift loyalties and by the chief implementer of the Marcos Martial Law who managed to survive politically up to now by turning against his former boss.

The political motive behind all these moves is further shown by Malacañang’s reaction to the latest explosive and damaging photographs of the first couple playing golf and “socializing” with ZTE officials in China, the same ZTE involved in that aborted and scandal rocked ZTE-NBN project. The Palace tried to downplay the significance of such incidents on the possible involvement of the first couple by merely shrugging it off as an attempt to divert attention away from the issue of Meralco’s high electricity rates. Such reaction confirms that the Meralco bogey is but a part of a deadly political propaganda war with the poor Filipinos caught in the crossfire.

Requiring Meralco to reduce its supposedly exorbitant electric rates is apparently a most welcome move especially by electricity consumers. It may really boost the image of the administration as champion of the suffering masses which is always mindful of the plight of the poor. This is the same image it would like to project in its previous other actions concerning the rice crisis, food shortage and soaring prices of commodities.

But somehow suspicion lingers that these crises are only ploys to shift public attention away from the unresolved scandals and corrupt practices besetting the administration under the guise of helping our poor countrymen; and that the moves to avert or solve them like the family access cards for cheap rice, the P500 “Ahon Pinoy” financial assistance and the gasoline discount cards are mere modes of dispensing political patronage. Indeed the billions of pesos of government funds to be used in subsidizing these programs will surely benefit the administration candidates in the coming elections.

There is however one particular and simple act that the government can do to show its sincerity in helping our countrymen. It does not have to reach out far and wide. It can start within its own rank and file of civil servants who have been deprived of what is due them under the law in the form of cost of living allowance and other financial assistance like the amelioration allowance and equity allowance.

Prior to the passage of the Salary Standardization Law (R.A. 6758) on July 1, 1989, government employees enjoyed these allowances. But in the implementation of the law, the DBM effectively abolished these allowances on the belief that under Section 12 of said law, they are already deemed integrated into the standardized salaries. In the case of employees in government owned and controlled corporation the DBM even issued a Circular on October 2, 1989 (DBM CCC 10).

This DBM move triggered a spate of court cases where the lowly government employees had to spend for litigation expenses. Eventually on August 12, 1998, the Supreme Court invalidated the said circular mainly because of lack of publication (De Jesus vs. COA, G.R. 109023). Rather than authorize payment of said allowances, the DBM tried to cure the defect. But on June 9, 1999 the SC again ruled that the publication cannot retroact to the time when the allowance was disallowed in audit (PITC vs. COA, G.R. 132593). Still, DBM allowed payment only with respect to employees of GOCCs involved in the case and not to other employees of GOCCs. Finally on March 14, 2008, the SC conclusive and clearly ruled that GOCC employees are entitled to COLA and other allowances from 1989 to 1999 (MWSS vs. Bautista, G.R.171351).

With respect to other government employees and civil servants including public school teachers, the SC ruling on August 5, 1999 may likewise apply. In said case, the SC unequivocally declared that only those allowances usually granted to government officials and employees to defray the expenses in the performance of their functions shall be deemed integrated into their standardized salaries and shall not be paid anymore after RA 6758 took effect on July 1, 1989. The SC said that payment of other allowances in the form of financial assistance, compensation or fringe benefits that are non-reimbursable whether in cash like COLA, EA and AA or in kind, like rice allowance which the government employees were enjoying when RA 6758 took effect shall continue to be authorized in addition to their standardized salaries as provided in the second sentence of Section 12 (NTA vs. COA, G.R. 119385).

With all these SC rulings, the government should no longer have any qualms in giving this meager financial assistance to the rank and file civil servants. Any doubt should be resolved in favor of these poor employees especially during these hard times. It is the height of unfairness for the DBM and this government to scrimp on this expenditure when it can release billions of pesos for Congressional pork barrel. The government should have no part in this rank inequality. Giving this long overdue financial assistance will prove its sincerity in helping our lowly countrymen especially within its own rank and file.

Note: Books containing compilation of my articles on Labor Law and Criminal Law (Vols. I and II) are now available. Call tel. 7249445.

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