COA: Remulla highest paid in Cabinet last year

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla took home the biggest paycheck among the Cabinet members of President Marcos in 2023, latest report of the Commission on Audit (COA) showed.

- ELIZABETH MARCELO

Based on the COA’s “2023 Report on Salaries and Allowances” or ROSA uploaded on its website on May 2, Remulla received a net pay of P7.08 million last year, his first full-year term in the Department of Justice (DOJ). This was an increase of P6.6 million or 1,283 percent from the P511,308.00 he received in 2022.

Though Remulla started his term as justice secretary in July 2022, the COA, in its 2022 ROSA, noted that he only received salaries and allowances for three months that year.

As for 2023, the COA’s breakdown showed that Remulla’s net pay was for 12 months as DOJ chief. This included P3.34 million in basic salary; P738,720 in allowances; P598,868 in bonuses, incentives and benefits; P354,000 in discretionary and extraordinary and miscellaneous expenses (EME); P24,000 in additional compensation and honorarium; plus P2.02 million from “prior year’s adjustment.”