Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said the impact of the military and uniformed personnel (MUP) pension reform in the national budget may be felt starting January next year.

"The military pension reform is part of the top priority legislative agenda of the president, concurred in by Congress and we expect this to be passed before the end of the year, and so it will have an impact as soon as January of next year," said Diokno during the post-SONA briefing in Pasay City on Tuesday.

Diokno said the economic teams are continuously visiting MUP camps and offices to explain the importance of the reform in the pension system.

"I think so far, as we explained to them, that this is really for their own good, to make the pension system more sustainable in the future; and I think they are very receptive," he said.

"We have the treasurer, and my several undersecretaries have been going around and explaining to them. And so far, I think the results of the consultation are very encouraging," he added.

Diokno said there are three types of beneficiaries from the pension reform system. These are for retired, active service, and for the newly recruited personnel.

"Those who are already retired, we’ll not touch them, more or less, because that’s like a contractual obligation to them. Those who are in active service will be asked to contribute gradually to the system; and those who are going to be recruited for the first time will pay the full amount of the benefit," he said.

Diokno said the reform in the pension of MUP is a " game-changer" as it is expected to "open up a lot of fiscal space" in the national budget.

"If my numbers are right, 2024, we have allocated something like 300 billion pesos, three hundred billion, that’s approximately $6 billion for the military pension," he said. Robina Asido/DMS