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Plebiscite on BBL should be national, not just limited to Bangsamoro – Sen. Recto


Senator Ralph Recto estimates that the envisioned Bangsamoro political entity in the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law will receive P528.6 billion in funding from the national coffers over six years. Given the magnitude of this prospective budget, Recto said the plebiscite on the BBL should be on a national scale.

“Wala akong problema na dagdagan natin ang pondo sa buong Mindanao, ganoon din sa ARMM. Wala akong problema doon. Pero siguro kung ilalagay natin sa BBL na ito, hindi rin maaari na ang plebisito natin ay doon lamang sa ARMM dahil ang magbabayad nito ay buong Pilipinas. Kung saka-sakali, ang plebisito dapat ay buong Pilipinas din,” Recto said during his interpellation of Senate majority leader Alan Peter Cayetano.
 
Cayetano delivered a privilege speech on the BBL.
 
Recto said his data on the Bangsamoro budget comes from the Department of Budget and Management. 
 
“Meron po ako dito na binigay ng DBM sa House of Representatives at sa totoo lamang nasa Internet na pero nabigyan ako ng pagkakataon ngayon na mailagay ito sa Senate record. Sinabi ng DBM, P528.6 billion in the next six years ang ibibigay at ito ay conservative projections,” he said.
 
The senator said some P73.7 billion will be allocated to the political entity in 2016; P82.5 billion in 2017; P91.6 billion in 2018; P99.4 billion in 2019; abd P111.4 billion in 2020.
 
“Padagdag nang padagdag pa ito,” he added.
 
Recto said under the pending Bangsamoro Basic Law, which will create the Bangsamoro political entity, the funds will be automatically allocated and will not pass through the Congress.
 
“Dito hindi na kailangang idepensa ng leader ang budget nila. Automatically appropriated na. Hindi na kailangan iyong block grant. Pag inapbrubahan natin iyong BBL, block grant na iyong karamihan ng pondo doon. In effect, it is automatically appropriated. Hindi na kailangang depensahan dito. Bahala na sila kung papano nila gagastusin,” he said.
 
In the present set-up, the budget of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or other government agencies is being defended by its governor or secretary before members of the Senate and House of Representatives who scrutinize the proposed allocation separately.
 
The budget of the ARMM for 2015 is P45 billion and it will be increased by P30 billion in the following year once the political entity, replacing ARMM, is formed.
 
The senator disputed the statement of chief government peace negotiator Miriam Coronel Ferrer that the only P7 billion will be given to the political entity with P6 billion as some kind of a mini start-up fund and P1 billion partition fund.
 
“She makes it appear that P7 billion lang pero meron akong binigay ng DBM (na computation) sa House,” Recto said.  — ELR, GMA News
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