CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro — House Deputy Majority Leader Arnan Panaligan pressed defense officials to ensure adequate, timely and sustainable funding for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program.
He made the move during the recent budget briefing of the House Committee on Appropriations last week.
Panaligan, who is the Oriental Mindoro congressman, also advocated legislative fixes to loan limits and funding gaps that can delay critical defense acquisitions.
During the interpellation of National Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro on August 25, the lawmaker highlighted key issues surrounding the program’s financing.
These include the release of unspent funds to the need for expanded borrowing authority and clearer spending priorities.
The proposed 2027 national budget allocates P50 billion for AFP modernization under a Multi-Year Contractual Authority (MYCA) intended to support long-term defense acquisition contracts.
Meanwhile, the P50 billion in unprogrammed appropriations earmarked for the program in the 2026 budget has yet to be released.
Budget Secretary Kim Robert de Leon earlier told the committee that the funds would be made available only upon request from the Department of National Defense and AFP, subject to the availability of excess revenues.
He also said that the allocation will be given only after the ₱40 billion regular appropriation for 2026 is fully utilized.
“We requested the DND to submit a detailed update on how the ₱40 billion has been spent, including specific items funded under it, as well as the priority acquisitions to be charged to the proposed ₱50 billion for 2027,” Panaligan said on Monday.