Sotto confident Duterte to veto ‘unconstitutional’ budget provision

LINGAYEN, PANGASINAN — Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Friday expressed confidence that President Duterte would exercise his veto power on the “unconstitutional” realignments in the proposed P3.8-trillion budget for this year.

“If I know the President, he will veto that portion. In fact, he might veto some other (items),” Sotto told reporters here shortly after the commemorative program of the 439th Pangasinan Foundation Day celebration.

Sotto said the realignment of some P75 billion worth of projects previously identified by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program was done after the bicameral conference committee had ratified the proposed budget.

“It was not part of the itemization as what they are saying now. It was not part of what we agreed upon to itemize in the bicameral conference committee,” Sotto said.

He said appropriations for projects intended for the provinces of Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte, Samar, and Zamboanga del Sur were moved somewhere else.

“And these projects are not projects of the congressmen. These are DPWH identified projects,” Sotto said.

He said that allegations the Senate cut the budget was not true.

“Hopefully, the President will veto the portions that were touched after the ratification and were not part of the bicam,” Sotto said.

He said when the 18th Congress opens in July, the Senate would help the new House leadership to formulate a new supplemental budget that would revert back to the original bicameral conference committee agreement on the realigned P75 billion worth of projects.

Asked what would happen if the President refuses to line-veto the budget, Sotto said: “I’m sure someone will bring it to the attention of the Supreme Court. Someone will file a petition in the SC questioning those unconstitutional realignments.”