Lacson bares P1M uniform budget for 42 congressional districts

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Panfilo Lacson’s scrutiny of the 2021 budget bared an alleged uniform P1 million allocation for 42  congressional districts in the country.

Lacson considered this “insertions” possibly made by some congressmen.

“May nakita pa kami na P1 million uniformly appropriated to several districts. I think around 42 districts all over the country,”  he said in an interview over  ABS-CBN News Channel on Thursday.

“So what does that mean?  Ibig sabihin ito yung insertions na nga but inserted already not anymore under the General Appropriations Bill in Congress but dun sa NEP (National Expenditure Program) as submitted very late ng DPWH.”

(So what does that mean? It means  these were indeed the insertions but   inserted already not anymore under the General Appropriations Bill in Congress but in the NEP  as as submitted very late ng DPWH)

The senator earlier exposed the P396 billion lump sum appropriations lodged under the proposed  2021 budget  of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

He said the DPWH later submitted the breakdown to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), which transmitted the same to Congress.

But Lacson noted that the DBM’s submission of the breakdown came 12 days late from the required 30-day period since its original submission of the NEP already expired on  August 26.

The breakdown was just submitted by the DBM to Congress on September 7.

“Dapat yun ginawa na lang sa House, dun sa kanilang House version (It should have been done  in the House, in their House version). But it seems that as per information coming some congressmen themselves, there was a lot of haggling that went on between the DPWH and some congressmen so much so that DPHW was not able to submit on time,” he pointed out.

“So following that assumption na merong haggling, galing na nga talaga sa mga congressmen yung breakdown na sinubmit ng DPWH na nag-increase nga yung mga local projects specially multi-purpose buildings,” Lacson said.

(So following that assumption that there was haggling,  the breakdown submitted by the DPWH with increased budget for  local  projects specially multi-purpose buildings must have really come  from congressmen)

The budget for said multi-purpose buildings, he said, amounted to P67 billion.