Romualdez vows transparency in budget process: Every peso will count

MANILA, Philippines — House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez has vowed to push for more transparent and stringent discussions on the proposed P6.793 trillion budget for 2026, saying that every peso should count and help Filipino families.

In his speech before the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) transmitted the National Expenditures Program (NEP) to the House, Romualdez said that there will be five reforms for this year’s deliberations:

• removal of the small committee that tackles the budget even after the bill’s approval
• opening the bicameral conference committee hearing for public viewing
• inviting civil society organizations to scrutinize the budget
• strengthening of House oversight functions
• pushing for investments on the industries of agriculture, infrastructure, education, health, defense, and disaster preparedness

READ: Sona 2025: Marcos on corrupt people in flood control deals: ‘Shame on you’

The first three reforms have been mentioned already in the past by Romualdez and House committee on appropriations chair and Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Suansing.

“A budget is not just a spending plan—it is a mirror of our priorities and a measure of our accountability to the people. And because this is the people’s money, the process of crafting it must be transparent, inclusive, and worthy of public trust,” Romualdez said.

“That is why, beginning this year, the House will implement important reforms,” he added.

Also, Romualdez said the House will see to it that every peso in the budget counts, and will provide tangible benefits to Filipino families.

“Bawat piso, may pinaglalaanan; bawat gastusin, dapat may pakinabang sa tao,” he said. “Today’s (Aug. 13) turnover of the 2026 NEP from the DBM is not just a formality. It is the first step in shaping how our government will serve the Filipino people in the year ahead.”

“[The NEP] is the government’s plan to make the vision of a Bagong Pilipinas real—roads that connect communities, markets where food is affordable, schools that open doors to opportunity, hospitals that save lives, and safe, secure communities for every Filipino,” he added.

According to the briefer from the DBM, the largest chunk of the proposed budget will go to education, at P928.5 billion, followed by public works at P881.3 billion, and then health at P320.5 billion.

After the top three, the largest allocations go to the following departments:

• Defense (P299.3 billion)
• Interior and Local Government (P287.5 billion)
• Agriculture (P239.2 billion)
• Social Welfare (P277.0 billion)
• Transportation (P198.6 billion)
• Judiciary (P67.9 billion)
• Labor and Employment (P55.2 billion)

In a broader scope, social services get the biggest slice, at P2.314 trillion. This was followed by the following:

• economic services (P1.868 trillion)
• eneral public services (P1.202 trillion)
• debt burden (P978.7 billion)
• defense (P430.9 billion)

Education appears to be the biggest gainer under the 2026 NEP, as its budget was increased to P1.2 trillion. If enacted as is, the proposed P1.2 trillion budget for the education sector—up from last year’s P1 trillion–could meet the United Nations’ recommendation to allot 4-6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product to education.

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said the 2026 NEP was carefully crafted to meet the country’s needs.

Under the country’s budget process, the executive branch is required to submit its expenditures program to the legislative department, within 30 days since the opening of every regular session. The House committee on appropriations will discuss the proposed budget of each department, before submitting a committee report which contains the GAB.

The GAB is then discussed at the plenary level, where amendments are proposed. Once the GAB is approved on third reading, it is forwarded to the Senate for its own deliberation.

However, the budget process is facing greater scrutiny now after several concerns were raised about the 2025 General Appropriations Act—from alleged blank items in the bicameral conference report on the 2025 GAB, to claims of last-minute insertions that went to flood control projects.

During his fourth State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned government officials and contractors who allegedly earned kickbacks from flood control projects.

He also warned members of both the House and the Senate that he would not sign any proposed national budget that would not be aligned with the administration’s programs—even if it results in a reenacted budget.

Marcos’ strong-worded warning came amid concerns from Senator Panfilo Lacson that half of the country’s almost P2 trillion funds for flood control projects since 2011 may have been lost to corruption.