The Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) has sought the intervention of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. regarding its long-standing request with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to equalize the salary grades of public attorneys with those of prosecutors under the National Prosecution Service (NPS).

PAO Chief Persida Rueda-Acosta disclosed on Tuesday, 16 December 2025, that the request, if approved, would apply to future officials and current senior public attorneys, and would not benefit her personally as she is nearing retirement.

Rueda-Acosta said the request, submitted to the DBM on 20 December 2021, seeks to implement provisions of Republic Act No. 9406, or the PAO Law, which mandates parity in rank, salaries, allowances, and retirement benefits between PAO officials and their NPS counterparts.

She noted that in 2004, she was promoted from Salary Grade 30 to Salary Grade 31 after receiving the Presidential Lingkod Bayan Award, placing her compensation on par with that of a department secretary. However, she said the current request is intended to apply to succeeding PAO officials and senior staff.

“To accord the next Chief Public Attorney and other PAO officials with a right that has accrued to the position being the counterparts of the Prosecutor General of the NPS,” Rueda-Acosta said, confirming that a letter was sent to the President.

“We at the PAO trust the President for his unwavering understanding of the needs of our office in providing quality public service to our clients and equalizing their standing in the judicial arena,” she said.

Ana Lisa Soriano, deputy chief public attorney for Luzon, cited provisions of the PAO Law stating that the Chief Public Attorney should have the same qualifications, rank, salary, allowances, and retirement privileges as the Chief State Prosecutor of the NPS. She added that deputy chief public attorneys and other PAO officials are likewise entitled to parity with their respective NPS counterparts.

Erwin Erfe, deputy chief public attorney for Visayas and Mindanao, said the DBM denied the request in 2022, citing that the NPS law was enacted later than the PAO Law. He added that the DBM also required PAO to obtain the official position of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the matter.

Erfe said PAO considers the DOJ’s position unnecessary, citing the office’s independence and autonomy, despite being attached to the DOJ for policy and program coordination.

With no resolution from either the DBM or the DOJ, PAO officials said they decided to elevate the matter to the President for resolution.