Lacson urges Duterte to veto pork ‘insertions’ in 2019 budget

Panfilo Lacson. INQUIRER FILE

MANILA, Philippines – Senator Panfilo Lacson on Tuesday dared President Rodrigo Duterte to remove the alleged “pork” inserted by lawmakers on the 2019 budget by using his veto powers.

In a Twitter post, Lacson said the President should use his “line-item veto power” over the proposed 2019 budget by removing “pork inserted by lawmakers” who are “incorrigibly insatiable and “beyond redemption.”

“Mr. President, you have displayed your strong political will on several occasions,” Lacson said in a Twitter post.

“This time, use your line-item veto power over the 2019 appropriations measure by removing all the ‘pork’ inserted by lawmakers who are incorrigibly insatiable and simply ‘beyond redemption’,” he added.

Mr President, you have displayed your strong political will on several occasions. This time, use your line-item veto power over the 2019 appropriations measure by removing all the “pork” inserted by lawmakers who are incorrigibly insatiable and simply “beyond redemption”.

— PING LACSON (@iampinglacson) February 5, 2019

It was Lacson who questioned the alleged “pork” insertions in the budget, which remained pending in the congressional bicameral conference committee (bicam).

Earlier, Lacson disclosed that one or more senators made P3.3-billion “insertions” for one province alone, which is part of the P23 billion that some senators inserted on the budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) alone.

READ: Lacson: One province gets P3.3-B budget ‘insertions’ from senators

On Monday, Senator Loren Legarda reported that the bicam agreed to approve and ratify the 2019 national budget by Friday. /cbb

READ: Bicam ‘breakthrough:’ 2019 budget to be ratified by Friday – Legarda