Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman (File photo)
MANILA – The PHP5.268-trillion national budget for 2023 contains line items that will help achieve the Marcos administration's bid for an "inclusive and sustainable" economic transformation, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said Wednesday.
Pangandaman issued the statement, as she called on the government leaders to lead with empathy to respond to the needs of the people.
"As leaders in government, it is incumbent upon us to lead with empathy. We must truly consider and respond to the needs of our localities," Pangandaman said in a message at the League of Municipalities General Assembly at the Manila Hotel.
"With empathy for the needs of our people, the Department of Budget and Management prepared a national budget for economic transformation that is truly inclusive and sustainable — budget na tunay na dumaramay, nakaka-unawa at nagmamalasakit sa mga Pilipino (a budget that truly empathizes with, understands and cares for the Filipinos)," she added.
Pangandaman said the 2023 budget supports the Marcos administration’s eight-point Socioeconomic Agenda and is designed to cater to the objectives of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023 to 2028.
She added that this year's budget puts a premium on strengthening social protection, ensuring food security and establishing livable communities.
She also reiterated that the DBM would support the local government units (LGUs) in the process of the full devolution of functions.
Executive Order 138, issued by former President Rodrigo Duterte in June 2021, orders the full devolution of certain functions of the executive branch of the government to LGUs, in line with the Supreme Court’s Mandanas-Garcia ruling.
Pangandaman noted that LGUs would get around PHP820.3-billion automatic appropriations as part of their National Tax Allotment and some PHP16.5-billion allotment for the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF).
Under the LGSF, budgetary allocations are provided for financial assistance to LGUs, Growth Equity Fund and support to the Barangay Development Program of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict.
Pangandaman also cited the DBM's crucial initiatives that will help empower local governments in achieving resilience and autonomy.
Such initiatives, she said, include the institutionalization of the Philippine Open Government Partnership, rollout of the Participatory Budgeting Program, continued thrust towards the passage of the Progressive Budgeting for Better and Modernized (PBBM) Governance Bill, and implementation of the DBM's Digital Transformation Roadmap.
As the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) government undergoes transition, the national government has also appropriated funding for its Annual Block Grant; Special Development Fund for the rebuilding, rehabilitation, and development of its conflict-affected communities; and their share in taxes, fees, and charges collected in the region.
Pangandaman said all the DBM's initiatives signifies the agency's resolve to empathize with the needs of local governments and the Filipino people in pursuit of good governance.
"Through empathy, we will all be moved to work with the best of our abilities for the betterment of our municipalities and our country. Sa tunay na pakikiisa sa ating mga mamamayan, magiging tunay na tapat ang ating serbisyo sa ating bayan (Through cooperation with the public, we can provide genuine public service in our nation)," she said. (PNA)
