Poe belies Sen. Marcos’ claim that OVP budget hike appeal was snubbed

Sen. Grace Poe, chair of the Senate finance panel. Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau

MANILA, Philippines — Senate finance panel chair Sen. Grace Poe has disputed Sen. Imee Marcos’ claim that the committee allegedly “snubbed” their appeal to increase the budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) for 2025.

“The approval of the national budget for 2025 was an outcome of a judicious deliberation,” Poe said when she defended on Monday the approval of the proposed P6.352-trillion national budget for 2025.

Over the weekend, Marcos said in an interview over DWIZ’s Usapang Senado program that she and her colleagues Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Sen. Bong Go, and Sen. Robin Padilla felt bad after the finance committee “snubbed” their appeal to increase the budget of  Vice President Sara Duterte’s office.

Marcos also claimed that at least 11 senators raised their hands when they were asked whether they were in favor of an OVP budget hike. According to her, their appeal was snubbed despite airing their stance.

Poe disputed Marcos’ allegation.

“All senators present in plenary voted for it, except for one, who abstained. The new budget will capacitate all agencies to perform their mandate to deliver quality service our people need. Efficiency in disbursement, utilization and rationalization of the people’s money is of the essence,” Poe told reporters in a text message when she was asked to comment on Marcos’ remarks.

Earlier, Poe said the OVP needs to justify in detail why it would need an additional budget for next year should they deem the P733-million allocation allotted by both chambers of Congress as insufficient.

To recall, the OVP’s proposed budget was initially P2.037 billion. It was reduced by P1.293159 billion by the House of Representatives. The House is still probing the alleged misuse of the OVP’s confidential funds for 2022.

READ: Senate retains OVP’s proposed P733-M budget

Poe said she explained to her fellow senators during caucus why the OVP would be able to function with only P733 million.

She also reiterated that if the OVP thinks the allocation is insufficient, they can still appeal if they provide a detailed breakdown of expenses.

“If that’s insufficient, they need to justify how it wouldn’t repeat or double with existing programs,” Poe said in Filipino.

“As I’ve said, while deciding the budget, it’s always a duty and a privilege to do or to allocate the very limited resources of our country. So we’ll really check that to the true needs of the people in terms of health, education, and security,” she added.