Palace: Trillions of pesos in debt 'modest' if compared to those of other countries

The trillions of pesos that the Duterte administration would have accumulated when President Rodrigo Duterte steps down June 2022 amid the COVID-19 pandemic is a modest amount, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, Jr. said.

Budget and Expenditures and Sources of Financing for the fiscal year 2021 showed the government projects that the total outstanding debt for 2020 will amount to P10.16 trillion while for 2021 it is seen to reach P11.982 trillion.

“Well, in terms of actual figure, that’s big. But if you compare it with other nations, ours is a modest amount. That’s a big amount but we’re not actually amongst the biggest borrowers for COVID financing right now," Roque said in an ANC interview on Wednesday afternoon.

"The reality is other countries relied more heavily on borrowings to finance their COVID response compared to the Philippines. So, we’re in the middle,” he added.

Roque did not cite countries which posted higher debts than the Philippines for COVID-19 response.

He said that the administration’s debt policy was very conservative.

“We have actually been very conservative in our borrowings and I think it would pay off, and it also reflects the the trust given to us in terms of credit worthiness,” Roque said.

The Philippines has earmarked P82.5 billion for COVID-19 vaccine procurement.

Of this amount, P70 billion is sourced from loans.

On the other hand, P2.5 billion is sourced from the 2021 national budget, while the P10 billion will come from the Bayanihan to Recover as One (Bayanihan 2) law.

The rollout date for the COVID-19 mass vaccination program in the country is yet to be determined pending the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines—of which date of arrival is also unclear to this day. -Llanesca T. Panti/NB, GMA News