Pimentel: 2024 budget ‘unconstitutional,’ may be raised before SC

MANILA, Philippines — The proposed national budget for 2024 may be challenged before the Supreme Court for allegedly being unconstitutional, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel said on Wednesday.

Pimentel claimed the country will be running under a P6-trillion appropriation anew if President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAB).

The bill was already ratified by the Senate and the House of Representatives last Monday and will be transmitted to Malacañang for the President’s signature.

“Yung reported total na P5.7 (trillion), dagdagan niyo ng P450 billion ‘yan, kasi dyan sa P5.7 billion na ‘yan kasama na dyan ‘yung P281 billion ng unprogrammed,” Pimentel said in an interview at the Senate.

(With the reported total of P5.7 trillion, there will be an additional P450 billion to that because within that P5.7 billion, the P281 billion for unprogrammed is already included.)

The senator earlier disclosed that from Malacanang’s original proposal of P281.9 billion, the unprogrammed funds in the 2024 GAB were raised to P731.4 billion after the bicameral conference committee meetings.

“Ang problema sa unprogrammed, two years running ko nang napapansin nagbo-bloat ang unprogrammed appropriations,” he said.

(The problem with unprogrammed is that I have been noticing for two consecutive years that unprogrammed appropriations are bloating.)

The increase in the unprogrammed funds has brought next year’s proposed allocation to more than P6 trillion, Pimentel said.

This, he said, exceeded Malacanang’s original proposal of a total of P5.768 trillion for 2024.

“Actually, [the national budget for] 2024 will be the second P6 trillion budget,” Pimentel pointed out, saying this year’s national budget is the government’s first P6 trillion spending program.

He said the Constitution is clear that while Congress can retain or decrease the appropriations, it cannot augment it.

It did not distinguish whether the appropriations are programmed or unprogrammed “because an unprogrammed appropriation is still an appropriation,” Pimentel further said.