The House of Representatives. (Gabriel Pabico Lalu/INQUIRER.net)
MANILA, Philippines — The group Bayan Muna will question President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s certification of the 2025 budget bill as urgent before the Supreme Court (SC) again, as they believe such executive power is reserved for calamities and emergencies.
In a press briefing before Bayan Muna’s national convention on Thursday, group chairperson Neri Colmenares said they have a live case before the SC on the same issue, but they will file another motion as another national budget was approved by the House through Marcos’ certification.
According to Colmenares, they believe certifying the budget bill as urgent only serves to avoid scrutiny, as there is no emergency at hand.
“Yes, ire-raise namin sa Korte Suprema ‘yan. We’ve already actually filed two challenges sa presidential certification kasi shino-shortcut niya ang legislative process na wala namang emergency. For example, budget, sinertify mo kahapon, o hindi nagka-second and third readings in separate days. Walang kopya ang mga kongresista na nag-approve ng budget. Malay nila kung may lumusot doon kung anong-anong mga pondo na hindi nila alam naging third reading bill?” he pointed out.
(Yes, we will raise this at the Supreme Court. We’ve already actually filed two challenges regarding presidential certification because they are trying to shortcut the legislative process without an emergency. For example, the budget was certified urgent yesterday, there were no second and third readings in separate days. Lawmakers who approved the budget did not have a copy. What if insertions were placed without them knowing about it?)
“There’s no other reason why President Marcos certified the bill urgent other than to shortcut the legislative process para hindi ma-scrutinize, hindi ma-question ng Minority o ng Makabayan ang mga kaduda-dudang insertion sa budget at ito na naman ang mangyayari ngayon,” he added.
(There’s no other reason why President Marcos certified the bill urgent other than to shortcut the legislative process so insertions in the budget would no longer be scrutinized or questioned by the Minority or the Makabayan bloc, and this happened again.)
Colmenares also questioned why the bill had to be certified as urgent when the House did not transmit it to the Senate before Congress went into a break.
“At ‘yong pangalawang pruweba na walang emergency, pagkatapos inaprubahan kagabi, aba’y magre-recess ang Kongreso? So ano’ng nangyari sa bill na minadali niyo? Naka-tengga lang ‘yan sa House. ‘Di ba? Ni hindi nga nila trinansmit sa Senado ‘yan eh. So kailan mata-transmit sa Senado? November pa ‘yan, when Congress resumes,” he said.
(The second proof of a lack of emergency is that after the bill was approved last night, Congress went into a recess. So what happened to the bill rushed by lawmakers? It’s stuck at the House, right? They did not even transmit this to the Senate. When will it be transmitted? It’s in November when Congress resumes session.)
“So why rush a bill, you are not going to transmit anyway to the Senate? Remember, it is stated in the Constitution, all bills shall pass three readings in three separate days with copies of the bill being approved in the hands of the members of Congress, unless a certification from the President on the public calamity or emergency to ensure the immediate enactment of the bill,” he added.
On Tuesday — a day before Congress was set to adjourn session — the House confirmed that they received a letter from the President informing the House that House Bill (HB) No. 10800 or the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), which contains the proposed 2025 budget, was certified as urgent.
“Pursuant to the provisions of Article VI, Section 26 (2) of the 1987 Constitution, I hereby certify to the necessity of the immediate enactment of House Bill No. 10800,” Marcos said in his letter.
“To ensure the uninterrupted operation of critical government functions, guarantee the allocation of fiscal resources for vital initiatives, and enable the government to adeptly respond to emerging challenges,” he added.
READ: Marcos certifies 2025 budget bill as urgent
Under Article VI, Section 26 of the 1987 Constitution, three session days should pass before bills passed on second reading are considered for third reading. There is an exception: if a sitting “President certifies to the necessity of its immediate enactment to meet a public calamity or emergency.”
The House on Wednesday approved the GAB, which amounts to P6.352 trillion, after 285 members voted in the affirmative, three in the negative, and no abstentions.
READ: P6.352 trillion budget for 2025 gets House nod