MANILA, Philippines – The Senate ratified Monday night the bicameral report on the P1.645-trillion national budget for 2011 highlighted by increases in the budget of both houses of Congress and the Office of the Vice President. The Upper House also approved a new provision in the final version of the 2011 General Appropriations Bill – the creation of an oversight committee on public expenditures which shall monitor the use of government funds to ensure that they are spent in accordance with the law.
Some P590 million was added to the budget of the House of Representatives while P345 million was added to the Senate’s budget.
In his sponsorship speech, Sen. Franklin Drilon said the appropriations for both the House and Senate were increased to bring it to the 95 percent level of the 2010 budget.
The amount of, P8 million was restored to the budget of the Office of the Vice President to also bring it to the level of the 2010 General Appropriations Act.
The bicameral report also restored the P143.107 million in Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) of 80 State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in a bid to settle the issue over budget cut for government schools and universities.
But Drilon emphasized that the budget of some 30 SUCs for their MOOE were reduced at the level of the 2010 national budget and limited the total net increase of SUCs to P110 million.
An additional financial subsidy of P200 million was also granted to the Local Government Units (LGUs).
The Senate also approved a provision in the bicameral report reducing the appropriations of the Department of Health (DoH), specifically P200 million supposedly for the purchase of contraceptives for artificial family planning.
The controversial P21-billion Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) was kept intact by the Senate.
The Senate also approved a P200 million Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) (also known as a pork barrel) for the Office of the Vice President.
It authorized the Vice President to identify infrastructure projects amounting to P100 million and soft projects worth P100 million for a total of P200 million.
The augmentation of the OVP budget was approved by Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Drilon. Drilon said the funds were sourced from the “pork barrel” of President Aquino’s budget as a senator.
“We again would emphasize that we have basically followed the President’s budget. This is the first budget of President (Benigno) Noynoy Aquino and we are making this approval in the hope that the present administration would carry out the programs as outlined in their budget,” Drilon said.
Hannah Torregoza, Manila Bulletin
