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2019 BUDGET IMPASSE

House retrieving 2019 budget docs submitted to Senate — Andaya


The House of Representatives is retrieving the 2019 budget documents containing itemized lump sum appropriations that it submitted to the Senate, appropriations panel chair Rolando Andaya confirmed on Wednesday.

Andaya announced the development amid the ongoing impasse between the Senate and House of Representatives as regards the proposed 2019 General Appropriations Act which President Rodrigo Duterte has yet to sign.

"The House leadership has dispatched the Secretary General to the Senate to physically retrieve the budget books that we sent to the senators," Andaya said in a statement.

"This is in-line with the Speaker's instruction to allow a last-ditch effort to break the budget impasse," he added.

Aside from this, Andaya said Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo also ordered to form a three-man House team that will discuss the contentious issues in the budget.

In a separate interview, Albay Representative Edcel Lagman said this three-man team includes him, Andaya and San Juan Representative Ronaldo Zamora.

Andaya said they are giving themselves five days to complete the task ordered by Arroyo.

He added that they are giving themselves five days to complete the task ordered by Arroyo.

Senator Panfilo Lacson on Monday announced that the House would now be withdrawing its version of the proposed 2019 budget, as relayed to him by San Juan City Representative Ronaldo Zamora.

Zamora, who was designated by the House to negotiate with the Senate as regards the budget bill, confirmed such development to reporters.

Arroyo, however, said following day that the House has not yet withdrawn its version of the budget from the Senate.

Andaya clarified that the latest development does not mean they are backtracking on their stance that lump sum items in the ratified budget bill need to be itemized.

"We maintain that the House did nothing unconstitutional, illegal or irregular when we approved and ratified the 2019 General Appropriations Bill in plenary session," he said.

"We hope that the contingents from the Senate and the House can agree to a common venue for a formal discussion on the issues and not debate on the merits of their position through the media," he added.

Lagman echoed Andaya's statement, saying that as far as he is concerned, the House's version of the budget bill is "constitutional and legal."

"The House version is free from any constitutional or legal infirmities. Moreover, the House version of the budget measure is entirely compliant with the bicameral conference committee report," he said.

"The withdrawal of the House leadership of its endorsement to Senate President Vicente Sotto III of the enrolled appropriations bill is to show good faith for the holding of immediate and sober dialogues to finally resolve the impasse," he added.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III welcomed the move of the House.

"I welcome the retrieval, I could have sent it back for being unfaithful to what was approved by the bi-cam and ratified in plenary but I did not as prudence dictates.  Our Congress is bicameral. It's very elementary,” Sotto said in a statement to reporters.

He said he will ask Senator Panfilo Lacson and Senator Loren Legarda, who heads the finance committee, to sit with the House members regarding the budget.

Senator Panfilo Lacson said Representative Ronnie Zamora has informed it about it earlier in the day.

“Kanina tumawag sa akin si Cong. Zamora, sabi niya na may instruction na si Speaker Arroyo sa Sec Gen,” he said in a radio interview. — with Amita Legaspi/RSJ, GMA News

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