lllorlo,y,c-
Business Inslght
-:;'Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Sotto to House: Stick
to ratified budget
BY RAYMOND AFRIGA
and PETER tABl cO
SENATE Ptesident Vicente Sotto
III
resterday asked the House-of
Representatives to stick to tlle rati-
6ed rersion of the P3.757-ttitlion
proposed 2019 national budget so
it could be passed "within a mafter
of dars."
He said if the House will not
stick to the otigjnal ratified vecion,
dre budget bill will be archived as
BUDGET
induding law enforcement. It will
deplete our GDP, you know that.
We have no money to spend and
move on)," he said at the award-
iog ceremony in Malacaffang for
the Outstanding \fomen in Lavr
Eoforcement & National Security
of the Pbilippines.
Rep. Rolando Andaya, chdrmao
of the House appropriations com-
mittee, yesterday said the public
should look else.where but the
House in the event that the pro-
posed 2019 budget is not signed
into la:wl
Spea-king at a press conference,
Andaya also said the Senate also
itemized is ameodments aftelt the
ratiEcation of the 2019 national
budget. However, he said, the
names of senato$ who endorsed
some inftas&uctute in the list of
projects were not disclosed.
Andala said the four books on the
2019 budget were submitted to dre
Departroar of Budget and Maoage-
ment yesterday to be forwxded to
the Ofice of the Ptesidenr
"As far as the Hous€ is con-
cerned, that's mission accom-
plished. We did our end of the jbb,
we worked hatd on dris. Even if a vendetta on Arroyo.
bit delayed, I hope the budget will
be passed," said Andaya.
Chief Presidential I-egal Coun-
Congress will adjourn onJune 8.
Goretoment has been tun-
ning on a re-enacted budget since
Jaruary because the ptoposed 201 9
national budgeg which was ratified
on Februarv 8, has yet to be trans
mined to Nlalacaiang and signed
by Presideat Duterte. Pdntiog has
vet to be Enished because of al-'
leged post-bicameral realignmelts
made by the House.
, Sen, Panfilo Lacson last week
accused Speaker Gloria Aroyo of
sel Salvador Panelo, concutrent
ptesidential spokesman, said Presi
dent Dutete may "petsuade" the
lawmal<ers to resolve thei differ-
ences so the 2019 budget could
be signed.
Sotto denied Andaya's allegation
that the Senate also made post-
bicameral amendments.
"I'm saying we assute you not a
single centavo sras touched after
we ratified it" he said.
Sotto said he is staadiog fum on
his position not to sign a budget
bill that has been tiokered widr, and
President Duterte will have no bud-
get bill to sign, until at least q/hile
the 17th Congress is in session.
He said government may run on
a re-enacted budget at least up tg
July or early August
He dared the House to have
Aroyo sign the printed copy of
the budget to prove the claim of
House leaders that there is noti-
ing illegal in making amendments
to the budget bill after it has been
ratiEed by both houses.
Sotto downplayed an allegation
of House deputy minority leader
A-athony Bravo that Lacson has
been taking the budget bill "hos-
tage" due to t]le serEtor's personal
He said it is the whole Senate
that has a problem wi*r t}re amend-
ments made to the ratiGed budget,
\i
violaring the Constitution when
she and het allies amended the rati
fied version of the prcposed 2019
national budget, and rcaligned por-
tions to Anoyo?s favored coogress-
men. Reacting to Lacson's claim,
Andaya said t}le House merely
itemized lump sum funds.
President Duterte said he would
not sign "anyhing that would be
an illegal document."
He also expressed concern
about governrnent running on
and not only Lacson. "It's just that
Senator Lacson has been verv
vocal about it aod he's been very
much against pork barrel," he said.
Lacson said Bravo's opinion
"re-fect}'his ovrn attitude and
chatacter."
"I am a foqiving person. I have
already forgiven all those.vho had
wronged me in the past. This is
about the national budget. This
is about my personal anti-pork
crusade and advocacy, not Speaker
Arrci,yo ot any congressman or
senator," he added,
On the allegation that senatofs,
too, have made amendments to
the ratified budget bill, Lacson said
Sen. Loren I-egarda, finance com-
mittee chair, assured him nothing
of that sort happened.
Lacson said Andaya's allegation
that senators also realigned P75 bil-
lion and another P25 billion in the
budget bill after its ratification is
an old issue because what Andaya
was referring to uas already tackled '
duting the budget interpellation in
the Senate.
"That was t}te amouat inserted
by then DBM Sectetary Beniamin
Diokno in the DP!(H budget,
and wh.ich was slashed after the
DPWH said it was not aware of it.
The P23 billion - not P25 billion
as Rep. Andaya claimed -- refers
to the individual amendments of
re-enacted budget.
"Magkaroon tayo ng slide sa
GDP (gross domestic product)
niyan if we are going to re-enact
the budget. Everybody will suffer
including the law enforcement. It
will deplete our GDP, a.lam ninyo
iyan. Walang perang panggastos
to move on [Ve will see the GDP
slide if we are going to re-enact
the budget. Everybody will suffer
a See BUDGET) Paee 83
some senators, which
Lacson said.
I exposed,"
Andaya, at the press conference,
said the Senate submitted its list
of projects only on February 11,
or three days after both Houses
ratified the P3.757-tdllion budget.
He explained that the itemiza-
tion of amendments wele amofig
the patametets agreed among
members of the bicamenl confer-
ence committee.
Clarifying the amendments, An-
daya noted that what the Supreme
Court declated to be unconstitu-
tional is the inttoduction of amend
ments to projects after the President
has signed the national budget.
'qWhat is barred is tinkering by
any member of Congress at the
post-enacfinent stage of the bud-
get. Nobody may introduce any
modifrcation after the budget was
signed and becomes a lawj'he said.
Likewise, Andaya said that wbile
House members identified them-
selves in the deailed-list of infta-
stucnre projecs worth P21 billion,
d:r€ Senate failed to make a similar
disclosure in its ov,n list of P21 bil
lion voth of in&astructure funding.
"In the Senate details, it was
not disclosed which seoator made
a request. So, the House is on a
better footing on the subject of
transparency," he said. - With
Joceljn Montemayor