Escudero urges Trillanes to respect colleagues’ decision to give up ‘pork’

Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/EDWIN BACASMAS

MANILA, Philippines–Senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV should respect, instead of criticizing, the decision of his colleagues who have decided to give up their “pork barrel” funds  next year, Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero said on Tuesday.

“Decision nya yun, ginagalang ko ang desisyon nya. Galangin din nya ang  decision ng mga gustong magpa-delete at mag pa-abolish nun,” said Escudero,  chairman of the Senate committee on finance.

(That’s his decision; I respect his decision. He should also respect the decision of those who want to delete or abolish  their [pork].)

Escudero made the remarks  when  sought to react  to  Trillanes’ statements that abolishing their Priority Development  Assistance Fund or “pork barrel” funds next year “will not  achieve anything aside from trying to look good in the media.”

Instead of deleting his P200-million PDAF  from the 2014 budget, Trillanes proposed to re-align  it for scholarship programs, medical assistance in government hospitals, and construction of barracks of soldiers and policemen.

“I could have opted to join the bandwagon of deleting the P200 million from the budget, but this will be an afterthought and will not achieve anything aside from trying to look good in the media. Worse, it will show utter insensitivity to the needs of the poor and the marginalized sectors,” Trillanes  said in a statement Monday.

But Escudero said the abolition of  PDAF was different from  the issue of attending to other needs of the people.

“Maliit  na bagay lamang itong dini-delete ang PDAF ng mga senador (Deleting  the PDAF of the senators is just a small matter)  but it will go a long way in so far as cleansing our institutions are concerned,” he said.

“Para sa akin hindi mo pwedeng lagyan ng monetary value ang paglilinis na ginagawa o pwede nating magawa kung mawawala yan at least sa parte ng Senado,” he added.

(For me, you can’t put monetary value in this cleansing process that we’re doing if we abolish  that [PDAF] at least on the part   of the Senate.)

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