Tulfo wants DA’s P50M confi funds stripped: ‘Ibalik o i-realign na lang’
MANILA, Philippines — “Wala naman kayong paggagamitan, ibalik [o] i-realign nyo na lang.”
(If you won’t use it, just return it [or] realign it.)
Senator Raffy Tulfo told a Department of Agriculture (DA) official on Thursday as he asked the department to let go of its proposed P50 million confidential allocation.
Tulfo made the request during the hearing of Senate committee on finance on DA’s proposed P167.5 billion total budget for 2024.
He prodded DA officials to explain why it is necessary for them to have a secret fund.
“Noong lumabas ang National Expenditure Program, they allocated P50 million confidential funds to be dedicated sana sa surveillance operation for anti-agricultural smuggling,” DA Assistant Secretary James Layug explained to Tulfo.
(When the National Expenditure Program came out, they allocated P50 million confidential funds expected to be dedicated then for anti-agricultural smuggling.)
But the senator pointed out there is no longer a need for DA to have confidential funds if its only purpose is to combat smuggling.
“Bakit kailangan nyo pa po ng confidential fund kung anti-smuggling ang pinag-uusapan?’ the senator wondered.
(Why do you still need a confidential fund if you are talking about anti-smuggling?)
“Nandyan naman ang BOC na meron ding confidential fund,” he pointed out.
(There is BOC that also has a confidential fund.)
Senator Cynthia Villar also stated the “enforcement agency against smugglers and cartels would be coming from law enforcement and not the DA.”
Villar was presiding over the proceeding.
This confirmation from his fellow lawmaker pushed Tulfo to demand DA’s secret allocation be removed.
“Paki-cancel na lang at huwag na kayong mag-confidential fund [at] pandagdag pa kayo,” he told the DA official.
(Please just cancel it and don’t have a confidential fund anymore because you are adding to it.)
He was referring to the overall expenditure of the department.
“P50 million is P50 million. That’s a lot of money,” he stressed.
While Layug agreed with Tulfo’s remarks, he later explained the department intends to spend its confidential budget supposedly for surveillance operations on importations.
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