Senators push for education over PH rebranding after Marcos veto

MANILA, Philippines — Senators on Wednesday respected the prerogative of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to veto items in the 2023 national budget.

While they recognized the veto, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III and Senator Nancy Binay expressed hope that education would be prioritized and that the rebranding of the Philippine tourism slogan be deferred, respectively.

“The president raised valid points in his veto message. I hope that the prioritization of the education sector as mandated by the constitution is really reflected in the budget law after the veto,” Pimentel told reporters in a message.

He added that they “still have to monitor how the budget is actually implemented.”

One of the vetoed items in the national budget is the Department of Education (DepEd) – Office of the Secretary Special Provision No. 4, “Revolving Fund of DepEd TV,” Volume I-A, Page 197.

READ: Marcos vetoes three items in 2023 national budget

Another item that the president vetoed is the proviso, “in no case shall the appropriations be utilized to change the tourism campaign slogan” under the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) Branding Campaign Program.

According to Binay, rebranding and marketing can be “costly” and may reach millions of dollars by changing the country’s tourism slogan.

“It is our commitment to equip the DOT with the necessary marketing tools and provide essential funds to support its programs. But given the country’s financial challenges, changing to a new slogan at this time may not be a compelling argument. As much as possible, we don’t want potential tourists to be confused with constantly changing messages every time they watch our new ads on television and social media.

“We still hope that the DOT considers deferring its plan to ‘rebrand’ and replace the ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines!’ campaign,” she said.

The final item that the President rejected is the Department of Labor and Employment – National Labor Relations Commission, Special Provision No. 1, “Use of Income,” Volume 1-A, Page 1157.

Following Marcos’ veto, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said their job now is to pursue oversight powers to ensure that funds are “spent economically, efficiently and effectively.”

“It is the President’s prerogative to veto some of the provisions of the General Appropriations Act, and we trust in his wisdom,” Villanueva said in a separate statement.

“The work of the legislature now is to continue its oversight powers and ensure that appropriated funds are spent economically, efficiently and effectively,” he added.

Marcos signed the P5.268-trillion 2023 national budget last week.

je/abc