MANILA -- House majority leader Rolando Andaya Jr. on Wednesday gave assurance that the realigned funds worth PHP51.792 billion from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) 2019 budget would be itemized.
Andaya made the statement in response to ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio’s claim that these realigned funds are “lump sum funds with no details.”
“The approved amendments in the budget will be itemized. There will be no post-enactment identification, which is prohibited. Spelled out dapat (It should be spelled out),” Andaya said in a statement.
In the Supreme Court decision declaring the congressional pork barrel as unconstitutional, it is now illegal for lawmakers to "intervene, assume or participate in any of the various post-enactment stages of the budget execution.”
On Tuesday, the House, convening as a Committee of the Whole, approved the realignment of some PHP51.792 billion under the DPWH 2019 budget to fund various programs of other government agencies.
The realigned funds originally meant for DPWH regional projects are now allotted for the construction of Tech-Voc Laboratories under the Department of Education (PHP3 billion); farm to market roads under the Department of Agriculture (PHP3 billion); state universities and colleges (SUCs) capital outlays (PHP1.2 billion); health human resources deployment (PHP3 billion) and health facilities (PHP3 billion) under the Department of Health; roads to tourist destinations (PHP10.8 billion), roads for trade and economic zones (PHP10.79 billion), and roads and bridges to decongest traffic (PHP10 billion) under the DPWH; and the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Fund (PHP5 billion).
Andaya admitted that these augmentations would be hard to itemize, particularly the budget for health workers and the calamity fund augmentation for Typhoon Ompong rehabilitation.
He, however, assured that “every line” in the General Appropriations Bill will “comply with laws and judicial decisions on public expenditures.”
“Ang importante (What’s important) is that we are opening the budget deliberations to improvements,” Andaya said.
Andaya said the Senate also introduces budget amendments, noting that some senators would call for an increase of the budget of a certain program, or question the cuts proposed in the budget.
“The Senate is not calling for the rubber-stamp approval of the budget. And when they propose changes, they view it as vigilance, while when the same thing is done by the House, it is met by suspicion. Mali naman yata 'yon (I think that’s wrong),” he said.
Andaya described the budgeting process as the “modern-day equivalent of the miracle of feeding a multitude out of a single loaf of bread”, wherein “the demands are many, the resources few.”
“There might not be enough budget space to accommodate appeals for inclusion in this very tight 2019 budget like, for example, any deficiency in the Bangsamoro Organic Law, and many more. One suggestion worth exploring is to put all of these in the Unprogrammed Fund,” Andaya said.
The plenary budget deliberation started Wednesday after it was stalled since Monday due to claims of a multi-billion insertion in the budget of some lawmakers.
Meanwhile, the minority bloc led by Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez expressed support to the realignment of the DPWH funds.
Senior deputy minority leader Lito Atienza said the House leadership removed “unjustified allocations” in certain districts of some “favored” congressmen.
“We want to have a budget that is justifiably fair to all districts in the country,” Atienza said. (PNA)
