Sotto: House should adopt Senate’s version of 2021 budget to speed up bicam process

Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III. SENATE PRIB FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives should just adopt the Senate’s version of the 2021 General Appropriations Bill if it wants to speed up deliberations at the bicameral conference committee for the proposed national budget for next year, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said Wednesday.

“I-adopt nila ang version namin, bibilis ang bicam [They should adopt our version and the process at the bicam will be fast],” Sotto told reporters in an online press briefing, referring to lawmakers at the House of Representatives.

“Wala nang pag-uusapan [if they will adopt the Senate’s version] eh. Ngayon, kung may pag-uusapan sa bicam, magka-ka-bicam at hindi nila i-a-adopt yung version ng Senado, hindi ko maisip kung paano mapapabilis. Baka meron silang technique, tingnan natin,” he added.

(There will be nothing to the discussed at bicam if they will adopt the Senate’s version. Now, if there will be a bicam and they will not adopt the version of the Senate, I don’t know how else the process can be hastened. Maybe they have a technique, let’s see.)

According to Sotto, “we are really staring at the possibility of a reenacted budget” for 2021 following the suspension of the session at the House of Representatives until November 16.

Previously, he also said that the move of the lower chamber could “most probably” result in a reenacted budget for the next fiscal year.

On Tuesday, the House approved on second reading House Bill No. 7727 or the proposed 2021 General Appropriations Bill, after Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano himself made the motion to terminate both the period of debates and period of amendments for the measure.

Cayetano said members of the House will vote on the final approval of the proposed national budget when it resumes session on November 16. This unprecedented turn of events at the lower chamber happened amid the speakership dispute heating up between Cayetano and Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco.

JPV