MANILA, Philippines–The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) dispersed the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) funds to legislators in small doses for indigent patients, scholarships and livelihood programs—a distribution pattern eerily similar to the congressional pork barrel funds before these were outlawed by the Supreme Court.
The Inquirer has obtained a 32-page summary of 1,014 special allotment release orders (Saros) covering P150.6 billion in total DAP funds, with some allocations as little as P5,000, to agencies and entities such as the departments of health, labor, education and agriculture, state hospitals, universities and colleges and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda).
Most of these DAP funds, distributed from October 2011 to December 2013, were not specified in the official list of the DAP projects presented by the DBM to the public shortly after President Aquino made his televised speech explaining the DAP and scolding the Supreme Court for declaring his purported economic stimulus program unconstitutional.
Saros
The list showed that roughly P300 million in funds were distributed through 180 Saros to the health department for financial assistance to indigent patients. These were on top of the estimated 100 Saros granted to Lung Center of the Philippines, National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Philippine Heart Center and Philippine Children’s Medical Center. These were in addition to lump-sum funds declared by the DBM in its official list.
About P360 million in extra funds were channeled to the Department of Social Welfare and Development through 76 Saros mostly as financial assistance under the Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services.
The DBM released about P870 million to the Department of Education and Tesda through over 180 Saros to bankroll scholarship grants and livelihood training programs.
Activist lawyer Harry Roque pointed out that the DBM had full control of how the DAP funds were spent as lawmakers were only given a menu by the Speaker and the Senate President from which to choose where their allocations of P10 million to P100 million would go.
“The bottom line is the lawmakers’ input if they want their DAP in the form of financial assistance or scholarships or medical grants or livelihood programs. The agencies implementing them have been preselected by the DBM,” Roque said in a phone interview.
DBM full report
In a statement on Monday responding to Monday’s Inquirer report that 900 Saros went to lawmakers’ projects, the DBM said it would release a more detailed list of DAP-funded projects.
“Judging the DAP by these figures is misleading to the public,” the DBM said in a statement.
The DBM said when Saros were issued to implementing agencies for legislator-backed projects, it usually involved several Saros all at once.
Under solon’s office
Each allocation under a legislator’s office is used for many projects at the same time, the DBM said. Each of those projects needs its own Saro. These projects include releases to state colleges and universities for scholarship grants, hospitals for medical assistance, and local governments for local infrastructure projects.
“You can’t put all these projects in one Saro. Separate Saros are required because the implementing agencies are different, each with its own set of accountable officers,” the DBM said.
Bulk of DAP went to agencies
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad explained that lawmakers normally use their allocation for several projects to respond to as many of their constituents’ needs as possible.
“It’s not uncommon for lawmakers to use their respective allocations for several projects under various implementing agencies,” Abad said.
Lawmakers, he said, were never given the money. Instead, they were allowed to nominate projects, which the DBM would decide whether or not to finance based on their economic merit.
“Most of the funds released through the DAP were in fact made to National Government departments,” Abad said.
The number of projects per lawmaker supported by a single allocation can “easily” go up to around 20 projects per legislator, Abad said. Multiplied that by the number of lawmakers, the number of Saros would naturally seem large, he said.
COA audit necessary
Senate President Franklin Drilon said the the DBM should release its report on the DAP for the sake of transparency.
“These are public records and it is only right that the public be given access to these documents so that they can scrutinize and find out if public funds were indeed put to public use,” Drilon said in a statement.
Drilon urged the Commission on Audit (COA) to conduct a thorough study on the use of the DAP funds. “Only a COA report would dispel fears that these funds were used for personal gain,” he said.
Sen. Sergio Osmeña III also said the DBM should bring the pertinent DAP records to Thursday’s hearing of the Senate finance committee, which will look into the controversial program. “The burden of proof is on the DBM,” Osmeña told reporters.
PNP got P3.24 billion
Also Monday, the Philippine National Police said it had received P3.24 billion from the DAP covering four activities, according to Chief Supt. Reuben Theodore Sindac.
The PNP spokesman said the first activity was for the 2013 operational transformation program, which received a Saro of P2.8 billion, although P27.4 million was actually spent. This went to “Operation Hilamos,” or the makeover of 810 police stations.
Sindac said the allotment was also supposed to cover the purchase of P945 million in additional patrol jeeps and P883 million in additional assault rifles.
He clarified that the operational transformation program should not be confused with the capability enhancement program, which had a fixed P2 billion allotment in the national budget.
The second activity was the 2012 funding for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao investment plan, which was allotted P136.3 million but only P132.2 million was obligated.
The third activity was the 2012 construction of police stations in regions all over the country, with an allotment of P128.2 million but only P103.7 million was used.
The fourth activity was for the 2011 additional funds for the deficit in P1,000 per capita mode, with P115.5 million in 10 Saros.
Projects on hold
“The PNP receives Saros, but when we receive these we do not immediately know the source. It was only recently that we learned that these were sourced from the DAP,” Sindac told reporters.
He added that of the total amount, only P379 million, or 11.7 percent, was only actually spent or “obligated.”
With the Supreme Court declaring DAP as unconstitutional, the PNP lamented that several of its projects, such as the planned purchase of patrol jeeps and rifles and the makeover of police stations had to be shelved.
“It’s a loss to us since some of our projects no longer pushed through,” Sindac said.–With reports from Paolo G. Montecillo, Leila B. Salaverria and Julie M. Aurelio
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