Ex-SEC officials, staff cleared of ‘unauthorized’ salary increaseMANILA, Philippines — Former officials and employees of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will no longer have to return P92 million worth of funds allotted for salary increases, which the Commission on Audit (COA) previously flagged as unauthorized, the Supreme Court ruled. With 12 votes, the SC unanimously “granted in part” the petitions of SEC and its former chairperson, Teresita Herbosa, which sought to reverse the COA’s notice of disallowance in 2014 that invalidated the grant of salary increase to SEC’s officials and employees in 2012. According to court records, the SEC, then headed by Herbosa, implemented a salary increase within the agency in 2012, invoking provisions of the Securities Regulation Code (SRC) that allowed using its retention income for the salary increase even without the approval of the Office of the President. The Court has also ordained that without presidential approval and DBM recommendation, any salary adjustments granted to GOCCs (government-owned and controlled corporations) or GFls (government financial institutions) are considered unauthorized and irregular,” the SC added. The high court also sided with COA in ruling that SEC violated provisions of the 2012 General Appropriations Act (GAA) in using the latter’s retention income for the salary increase.

Source: Philippine Star April 04, 2026 16:09 UTC