Intel fund cuts to benefit 4.6 million Filipinos

France Castro of ACT TEACHERS

MANILA, Philippines — House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro on Sunday asked the bicameral conference committee to realign the P9.3-billion confidential and intelligence funds (CIF) in next year’s proposed P5.268-trillion national budget as cash aid to 4.65 million of the country’s poor.

The ACT Teachers party-list lawmaker said that the Senate’s realignment of P172.67 million of CIF was a good start but still “far from enough.”

In a statement on Sunday, Castro urged the bicameral conference committee tasked to reconcile the 2023 general appropriations bill versions of the House of Representatives and the Senate to realign “majority, if not all” the P9.3 billion CIF to cash assistance for indigents.

She pointed out, “If all the P9.3B would be realigned to [aid] and P10,000 is to be [given] per poor family, then at least 930,000 families, or 4,650,000 poor Filipinos would benefit from it. If half of it would be realigned, then 465,000 families would get P10,000 and 2,325,000 individuals would benefit.”

Castro said that it would be better instead of spending billions of taxpayer money on secret projects the public can’t look into, lamenting that even government agencies, which should not be conducting intelligence-gathering or surveillance were given CIF.

P4.5B for the president

About P4.5 billion of the total P9.3 billion in CIF was allocated to the Office of the President. Initially, P500 million in CIF was set aside for the Office of Vice President Sara Duterte and P150 million for the Department of Education (DepEd), which she concurrently heads.

But Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel III expressed concern last month over the P9.3-billion CIF distributed to various civilian departments in the proposed 2023 national budget, citing the government’s repeated pronouncements on limited fiscal space.

Former Sen. Franklin Drilon likewise asked Congress to closely scrutinize the allocation of CIF, warning that it might become standard practice in the future. He said that it was Congress’ job to put funds where they were needed and in terms of the CIF, these should be for government agencies directly involved in national security.

Only P172M slashed

The Senate, last week, approved the proposed 2023 national budget, slashing P172.67 million from the CIF of different agencies, particularly DepEd’s, which were realigned to the maintenance and other operating expenses of other departments. The DepEd’s CIF was cut down to just P30 million.

Other government agencies whose CIF were slashed in the Senate version of the general appropriations bill include the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Department of Justice, the Department of Social Welfare Development, and the Office of the Ombudsman.

“The [P172.67 million] CIF realigned by the Senate is a good start but this is far from enough,” Castro said, adding that the people needed more of the CIF faced with high inflation, low wages and unemployment.