National athletes, coaches to get P5,000-increase in monthly allowance

MANILA, Philippines, July 27 ------ National athletes and coaches will receive an additional P5,000 in their monthly allowances starting in August. The development comes after the Philippine Sports Commission approved the increase promised by new chairman Patrick “Pato” Gregorio.

Gregorio, who replaced Richard “Dickie” Bachmann, made the pay raise one of his first orders of business when he was appointed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in June. “[W]e realized that so many athletes still get P10,000 per month,” said Gregorio. “That is even lower than the minimum wage.”

PSC deputy executive director Guillermo Iroy said national team members no longer need to sign and submit a daily time record with a comprehensive activity report. Instead, national sports associations (NSAs) are required to submit a newly adopted monthly training attendance certification — a change that “aims to enhance efficiency, streamline administrative requirements, while maintaining accountability in the disbursement of government support.” “This certification must be duly signed by the NSA president or secretary-general and notarized, and shall serve as the official basis for qualified members of the national training pool to receive their allowance for the particular month,” said Iroy.

National team members have been hard at work as they train for the Southeast Asian Games to be hosted by Thailand in December.

Source: rappler.com