The Philippine National Police (PNP) Saturday announced that it has implemented a raise in the salary of all its personnel, which they already received since the hike took effect last month.

Director General Jesus Verzosa, PNP chief, said the increase was actually the first of the four series of salary increases to be implemented based on Executive Order 811 issued by President Arroyo last June 17 for all workers in government, including policemen.

However, the Order does not only provide the salary increase for government workers but also set their minimum wage to be higher than those of their counterparts in the private sector.

For policemen, the Executive Order provides an average of 50 percent increase in their salary, but the total raise will be divided into four, to be given starting this year until 2012.

A total of P18.4 billion have been earmarked for the salary increase of PNP personnel and all government employees, coming from the 2009 General Appropriations Act and savings of various departments, bureaus, offices and agencies of the national government for the first wave of the salary raise.

Verzosa pointed out that the salary increase is not only for their uniformed personnel but also for the civilian employees of the PNP nationwide.

“The corresponding salary increase differential for the month of July 2009 was received by PNP personnel through continuous form cheques while the corresponding salary increases for the succeeding months will be automatically incorporated in the monthly payroll starting August, 2009 through the automated teller machine payroll system,” said Verzosa.

The PNP leadership believes that the across the board salary increases will further uplift the morale of the police and serve as a good incentive for them to perform their work better.

Incentives in the form of additional pay, allowances and even promotion in rank have been utilized by the Philippine National Police in an effort to upgrade the delivery of peacekeeping services to the whole of the country.

Last week, they honored a member of the police force, PO1 Danilo Malab, who was one of the four honor guards who endured a nine-hour funeral standing near the coffin of former President Corazon Aquino carried on top of a flatbed truck.