Solon defends OP’s need for P10-B budget

House committee on appropriations chair Elizaldy Co —Photo from Office of Elizaldy Co Media Affairs

MANILA, Philippines — No less than the head of the House of Representatives committee on appropriations has defended the need for a P10.50 billion budget for the Office of the President (OP), saying that the office is the primary agency in charge of formulating national policy.

In his speech on Monday, at the hearing on OP’s proposed budget for 2025, Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co said the office is tasked to coordinate programs of the government and ensure the fulfillment of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s goals.

READ: House panel finishes OP budget in 15 minutes; parliamentary courtesy hit 

“The Office of the President, a cornerstone of our government, plays a pivotal role in managing and coordinating the programs, activities, and projects in the executive branch. This coordination ensures that every policy, program, and initiative is unified in its purpose and contributes to the overarching goals of the Marcos administration,” Co said.

READ: Marcos: No politics in OVP budget deliberations

“Moreover, the Office of the President plays a vital role in formulating national policies consistent with the administration’s strategic agenda, which seeks to promote economic stability, inclusive growth, and the welfare of the Filipino people,” he added.

Co for his part assured the OP that the House panel would support its budgetary needs, given that the office has performed well. According to the lawmaker, the office deserves praise for being able to arrest Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KJC) founder Apollo Quiboloy.

“To fulfill its mandate, the OP is proposing a budget of 10.506 billion pesos to ensure that the essential work of policy formulation, governance oversight, and strategic coordination is delivered to its stakeholders, the National Government, and the Filipino people,” Co said.

“ The Office of the President holds a unique and critical role in our system of government. As the highest executive authority, it is tasked with the day-to-day administration of the government, the execution of laws passed by Congress, and the protection of national interests. It is vital that we allocate the necessary resources to the Office of the President to ensure the efficient functioning of our government and the continued service to our people,’ he added.

Deliberations on OP’s proposed 2025 budget were terminated in just under 20 minutes after Abra Lone District Rep. Ching Bernos moved to terminate the OP budget discussions at 9:39 a.m., or just 15 minutes after the appropriations panel convened at 9:24 a.m.

READ: OVP budget deferred after Duterte evades questions at House hearing

This was however opposed by the lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc, with Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel saying that it would appear that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is lying if the panel approves the OP budget, as the Chief Executive previously said that all agencies have to go through the budget deliberations.

Appropriations vice chair and presiding officer, Navotas City Rep. Toby Tiangco, asked Manuel to take back his statements, saying that the decisions of the House panel and the chamber itself are independent of those of the executive.

Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas, on the other hand, said that giving parliamentary courtesy to the OP only shows supposed double standards, as the Office of the Vice President had to endure over five hours of grueling discussions.