DILG Secretary Eduardo Año. INQUIRER FILE / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has agreed to realign the additional P9 billion aid to local government units (LGUs) tagged as “presidential pork.”
During his interpellations on the DILG budget Tuesday night, Senator Panfilo Lacson questioned the P16 billion allocation for “other financial assistance to LGUs.”
READ: Ping: P16B for LGUs smell like port, too
The senator noted that from the P7 billion proposal of Malacanang, the budget for LGUs assistance ballooned to P16.08 billion after it passed through the House of Representatives.
“Hindi alam ng ng DILG ito?” the senator asked.
“According to Secretary (Eduardo) Año, the DILG has nothing to do with it,” said Senator JV Ejercito, who was defending the DILG budget.
DILG Secretary Eduardo Año, who was assisting Ejercito in responding to queries about the agency’s budget.
“So lumpsum po ito? This is what we may call presidential pork,” Lacson said.
Ejercito reiterated Año’s statement that the DILG had nothing to do with the budget in questions.
Lacson said he had no problem with the P7 billion original proposal as he was just questioning the P9 billion added by the House.
“Dun tayo may problema because baka pwedeng ma-realign natin to other items in the budget,” he said.
Ejercito said the DILG agreed with Lacson’s proposal to realign the P9 billion.
Lacson said he would move that part of the P9 billion go to the recruitment and training of new members of the Philippine National Police, which he headed from 1999 to 2001.
Part of the realigned funds could also go to other items the PNP has requested, such as fixed-wing aircraft and maintenance of its helicopter and watercraft, the senator said. /cbb