Perks of being a Senator in the Philippines

There are a number of perks for being a senator in the Philippines, aside from being honorable and names printed in history books.

My previous post on Perks of a Senator. This is in time with the upcoming Elections. Just you wonder why candidates spend millions for a cheap salary. Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago tells us why.

Many candidates are running for Senator, not for public service but the budget given to them each month. It appears that P35,000 salary per month is just a front, they with the millions budget each senator has per month. Each got a Fixed Monthly Budget approximately P2 Million.


Each Offices has P500K budget for Maintenance and Operating Expenses (Rental, Utilities, Supplies at Domestic Travels); and another P500K for Staff at Personal expenses.

So to save expenses, err, to limit once spending, they get a few staff to work with. Wondering why you have Ghost Employee? Moreover, a P760K Foreign Travel allowance And to make it worse, no need to liquidate the receipts of the expenses, it only requires them a Certification.

All are Chairman of a certain Committee. The Committee Chairman receives also the same budget accepted by Senators of around P1 Million! Each one has a Committee for the 24 Senators and there are 37 Committees.

There's food for everybody! It appears to double their benefits and when you are blessed with a Committee Chairmanship. Then there's P200 Million Pork Barrel Budget each year, which will automatically have 10% (P20 million) of SOP. This is the percentage provided by the contractor to Senators that gave them the Infrastructure and Livelihood Project. Before the term of a senator ends, he earned P100 million in the Pork Barrel alone. Other greedy ones make not only 10%, but they insist on 20 - 30% commission from the contractor.

Note the changing lives of some of our Senators from the time they start their term. Once previously simple lives, now becomes lifestyle of the rich and famous, they live in exclusive subdivisions, many houses here and abroad and more than five vehicles. Now you still wondering why spend hundreds of millions of pesos the Senators to campaign for a position P35K per month salary? They can recover their campaign expenses once they become one?