Finance chief 2020’s highest paid Cabinet member

MANILA, Philippines — Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III took home the biggest paycheck among the members of President Duterte’s Cabinet last year, a latest report of the Commission on Audit (COA) showed.

Based on COA’s “2020 Report on Salaries and Allowances” or ROSA uploaded on its website on May 11, Dominguez was paid a total of P4.94 million last year from P4.64 million or seventh spot in 2019.

Dominguez’s net pay for 2020 was composed of P3.22 million in basic salary, P24,000 in additional compensation and honorarium, P342,000 in allowances, P710,011 in bonuses, incentives and benefits, P352,500 in discretionary and extraordinary and miscellaneous expenses (EME) and an additional P297,403 as chairman of the board of Land Bank of the Philippines.

Dominguez snatched the top spot from Science Secretary Fortunato dela Peña who slipped to fourth place with a net pay of P4.85 million from P5 million in 2019.

Next to Dominguez was Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi with a net pay P4.88 million from P4.86 million or third spot in 2019.

Cusi’s net pay was composed of P3.22 million in basic salary, P24,000 in additional compensation and honorarium, P342,000 in allowances, P546,202 in bonuses, incentives and benefits, P353,560 in EME, plus P138,809 from prior year’s adjustment. He also received an additional pay of P258,100 as vice chairman of the board of National Transmission Corp.?

Cusi took the spot from Health Secretary Francisco Duque III who slipped to sixth place with a net pay of P4.75 million from P4.88 million in 2019.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III came in third with a net pay of P4.86 million from P4.76 million (fourth spot) in 2019.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra remained in fifth spot with P4.83 million from P4.68 million in 2019.

The top six highest paid Cabinet secretaries, however, were not even among the top 100 highest paid government officials in the 2020 ROSA. The overall list was topped by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno with a net pay of P19.79 million, followed by Solicitor General Jose Calida with P15.66 million.

Dominguez ranked 146th in the overall list while Cusi ranked 154th. Bello is 161st; Dela Peña, 162nd; Guevarra, 166th and Duque, 172nd.

A total of 8,737 officials from 994 national government agencies, government-owned and controlled corporations, state universities and colleges and water districts were included in COA’s 2020 ROSA. Excluded in the report were elected government officials such as the President, senators and congressmen.

Agriculture Secretary William Dar received P4.65 million; Higher Education Secretary Julian Prospero De Vera III, P4.57 million; Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, P4.56 million, and Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez,P4.51 million.

Human Settlements Secretary Eduardo del Rosario received P4.51 million, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., P4.50 million; Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, P4.464 million; Information Secretary Gregorio Honasan II, P4.463 million.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles took home P4.43 million; Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr., P4.41 million; Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo, P4.40 million; Agrarian Reform Secretary John Castriciones, P4.374 million; Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, P4.370 million, and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, P4.36 million.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar received P4.35 million, Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu (P4.31 million), Public Works Secretary Mark Villar (P4.30 million), Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Carlito Galvez Jr. (P4.29 million) Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista (P4.28 million).

National Anti-Poverty Commission Secretary Noel Felongco’s total pay was P4.25 million, Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado (P4.24 million), Education Secretary Leonor Briones (P4.23 million), Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (P4.21 million), Technical Education Secretary Isidro Lapeña (P4.19 million),  Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Danilo Lim who died on Jan. 6 (P4.18 million),

Economic Planning Secretary Karl Chua (P4.08 million) from May to December 2020; Ernesto Pernia, P1.253 million (from January to April 2020; and presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr., P2.88 million (from April to December 2020)