Congress extends sessions to tackle 2019 budget

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri. (File photo by CATHY MIRANDA / INQUIRER.net)

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate and the House of Representatives will meet again in a conference on Friday to discuss and hopefully ratify the 2019 national budget.

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri announced the new schedule of the bicameral conference committee meeting before the Senate adjourned its session late Wednesday night.

Zubiri said the bicam will meet Friday morning to discuss and come up with a report on the budget.

Then at 3:00 p.m., the Senate will resume its session to discuss the bicam report.

Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III confirmed this in a separate text message to reporters.

“Bicam members will be at Polo Club Friday morning to review and sign the small bicam report. Session at 3 pm to discuss (the report),” Sotto said.

The new schedule of the bicam was reached after senators met in a caucus.

Sen. Cynthia Villar is confident the 2019 budget will be ratified by Friday.

“Magra-ratify sa Friday,” Villar told reporters when asked about the caucus.

“Alam mo bad for the economy na hindi ma-pass ang budget… Kung i-delay namin yan, kawawa ang mga tao,” she said.

[You know it will be bad for the economy if we don’t pass the budget… If we delay that people will suffer.] /atm