Romualdez bats for more military budget

President Rodrigo Duterte talks to speakership candidate and Leyte Representative-elect Martin Romualdez before their joint visit late Wednesday to the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division at Camp Gen. Vicente Lukban in Catbalogan City, Samar to award nine wounded soldiers. Senator-elect Bong Go and presidential adviser for the Visayas Michael Dino (not in the photo) also join the visit.

MANILA, Philippines – Leyte Representative-elect Martin Romualdez has joined President Rodrigo Duterte in calling for more budget allocation for the Armed Forces modernization plan and improvement of welfare programs for the families of military personnel.

Romualdez, an adopted honorary member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Sambisig class of 1991, said he would seek a meeting with top military officials to consult them on the legislative measures that need to be prioritized so that government can address the concerns of soldiers and their families.

“I was asked to join President Duterte in his working visit to the military camp in Samar and I saw the urgent need for Congress to act on the plight of our men and women in the battlefront,” said Romualdez, a lawyer and president of the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa).

He was referring to the President’s visit late Wednesday afternoon to the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division in Camp Gen. Vicente Lukban in Catbalogan City, Samar, where the Commander-in-Chief also pinned medals for gallantry on nine soldiers wounded-in-action.

With the President and Romualdez during the military camp visit were newly elected Sen. Bong Go and Presidential Adviser for the Visayas Michael Dino.

After seeing the condition of the soldiers recuperating in the hospital, Romualdez, president of Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD), said the 18th Congress should consider as a top priority the allocation of more budget for military personnel who are leading the fight against terrorists and extremists.

President Duterte has earlier announced that government is committed to pouring in P500 million for the medical assistance of troops in the battlefield. He also assured that immediate families of the wounded soldiers would also be taken care of.

“The President has shown, consistently, his concern for our soldiers in the battlefront. It is time for legislators to complement this presidential concern by providing the budget needed to uplift the living condition of our troops,” Romualdez, one of the frontrunners in the speakership race, said.

The budget increase, he said, must also include the provisions for fast-tracking the second phase of the Philippine military modernization plan which covers the period 2018 to 2022.

Under the first phase of the AFP modernization plan, which covered the years 2013 to 2017, at least P85 billion was allocated for the acquisition of assets including combat utility and attack helicopters, frigates, armored vehicles, rifles, and cargo and transport aircraft.

For the second phase, an amount of P125 billion should be earmarked for the acquisition of more equipment for external defense missions, including helicopters, fighter aircraft, multi-role fighters, and missile and radar systems.

“We need to ensure that the AFP modernization program is on-track so that government troops would continue to serve the nation and protect the country from all threats,” said Romualdez, a former House Independent Bloc leader of the previous 16th Congress.

Last week, Romualdez was also asked to join the President’s surprise visit to the NAIA, where the Chief Executive spewed directives to ease congestion at the country’s premier airport.

Acting on President Duterte’s instructions, Romualdez appealed for multi-partisan congressional support in securing additional funding for the rehabilitation and upgrade of all vital airports in the country.

Romualdez said the working visits with the President have given him the rare opportunity to see first-hand the urgent problems that need to be addressed by the incoming 18th Congress.

“I thank the President for the opportunity to see up close the problems that need an immediate solution. Working with him in seeking a solution to the country’s problems is a great working experience. For that, I will be eternally grateful,” Romualdez said.