Quezon province got P750M from DAP
LUCENA CITY—Quezon Gov. David Suarez acknowledged the P750-million funding assistance from Malacañang in 2011 that, according to the list recently released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), was from the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).
“The people of Quezon [province] are grateful to President Benigno Aquino for the funding assistance,” Suarez said in an interview on Friday.
Suarez said the funds were spent on “hard projects” like roads, ports, water system, school building and facilities, which were approved by the DBM prior to the release of the budget.
He, however, said that when the province received the funds, he did not know they were from the DAP.
“We were surprised when we learned a few days ago that the funds were from the DAP,” he said.
On July 1, the Supreme Court declared the DAP as unconstitutional. Malacañang has filed a motion for reconsideration.
Under Item No. 42 on the list of DAP projects released by the DBM on July 14, P750 million was released to Quezon as development assistance.
Webster Letargo, Suarez’s chief of staff, said the P750 million was released only after the provincial government had submitted to the DBM the list of projects proposed by different mayors in Quezon.
He said each project passed the scrutiny of the DBM. During construction, the projects were also strictly monitored and inspected by the Commission on Audit, Letargo added.
“Every centavo spent passed [through] strict government accounting. The project expenses are all aboveboard and transparent,” Letargo said.
He said no nongovernment organization was involved.
The DBM said the P750 million was the result of the compromise settlement on the tax liability of the state-run National Power Corp. to the province stemming from the operation of Team Energy’s 735-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Pagbilao town.
Quezon province had long tried but failed to collect P6.1 billion in real property tax from the plant operator despite a favorable Supreme Court decision.
In February 2011, President Aquino, through an executive order, reduced the real property tax and condoned the back taxes, including all surcharges and interests, owed by the plant operator to the provincial government.
To compensate for the loss, Mr. Aquino offered to provide P1.5 billion to Quezon to fund its development projects and programs.
But according to Letargo, the provincial government received only P1.2 billion, including the P750 million.
Letargo said the province also received P500 million in projects implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways, the Department of Health and the Department of Education.
From the P750 million, the municipal government of Pagbilao got P300 million while the plant’s host village received
P25 million in projects, he said.
At a Senate hearing on Thursday, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said the whole package of development assistance fund to Quezon amounted to P4 billion.
“With due respect to Secretary Abad, we received only P1.2 billion and not P4 billion,” Letargo said.
