‘Bayanihan 2’ not enough pandemic response: Robredo urges gov’t to spend more efficiently

MANILA, Philippines — The Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, dubbed as the “Bayanihan 2,” is not enough to address problems brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, Vice President Leni Robredo said on Monday afternoon.

Aside from that, Robredo also questioned in her latest public address why government is still operating on a budget that did not seem to meet the pressing needs of a health crisis.

She admitted that only the government can save the country’s economy — which contracted by 16.5 percent in the second quarter of 2020 — from further spiraling down. However, it cannot be done simply with the passage of Bayanihan 2.

“Walang ibang kayang mag-abot ng salbabida sa ekonomiya ngayon kundi ang gobyerno […] Hindi sapat ang mga probisyong nakatala at perang inilaan sa Bayanihan 2,” Robredo said in a recorded message streamed on her Facebook page.

“Government must spend more, spend efficiently, and spend quickly, with the utmost sense of urgency, as if our economic survival depends on it — because it does. And yet, heto tayo, nakasandal pa rin sa isang pre-COVID budget,” she added.

Robredo also noted that the government should not consider health and economic programs in the time of a pandemic to be opposing interests, as addressing health problems would lead to a better economy.

Previously, President Rodrigo Duterte said that he wanted to put Metro Manila under a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) but it would risk further economic problems after heeding the call of the medical community for a “time out.”

Earlier, the House of Representatives ratified the bicameral conference commiittee report containing the Bayanihan 2, the precursor of the Republic Act No. 11469 Bayanihan to Heal as One Act which allowed President Rodrigo Duterte to reprogram and realign items in the 2020 budget towards the COVID-19 response.

With this development, only Duterte’s signatureis needed for Bayanihan 2 to become a law.  Under the said measure, the government is given a P165 billion stimulus package, P140 billion of which is in regular appropriation while the remaining P25 billion are standby funds.

As of now, the country remains to have the highest COVID-19 cases in the Southeast Asian region, with over 194,000 coronavirus-infected patients, of which 3,010 have died and 132,042 have recovered.

EDV