House to allow public to directly participate in 2021 budget delibs —Cayetano

For the first time, the public will be given a chance to directly participate in the deliberations of the proposed P4.5-trillion national budget for 2021, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said on Monday.

In a statement, Cayetano said the House leadership will hold a meeting this week to devise a plan on how the public could directly participate in the budget hearings.

“Since the start of this pandemic, Congress has taken advantage of these new technologies to continue doing our work. Now, as we deliberate on the budget, we can use these same systems to allow our fellow citizens—not just to watch, but to directly participate in the process,” he said.

“This is going to be the first time that this will be done, so there might be some growing pains. But we want to make sure that it is as inclusive and comprehensive as possible. Dapat po lahat ng gustong magsalita ay mabibigyan ng pagkakataon na marinig ang boses," he added.

Cayetano's call for public participation in the budget hearings is similar to what he had done when he was still the Secretary of Foreign, when he would invite Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) leaders to join in meetings with ambassadors and consuls

“I’ve always believed that the best way to ensure accountability among public officials, is by being completely transparent in what we do," he said.

"Just like with the OFWs and the programs of the DFA, we want people to help us scrutinize, not just the budget but also Congress," he added.

For these budget deliberations, Cayetano wanted the public to use social media and other platforms to participate or to reach out to their representatives in order to join the hearings.

“We are the House of the People. We will be discussing the people’s money so the people should have a voice. They should be able to give us their opinion, tell us what they want us to prioritize, and witness the process firsthand," he said.

"This also goes to show our transparency and accountability to our constituents,” he added.

During the submission of the 2021 National Expenditure Program last week, Cayetano said the House is aiming to approve the proposed 2021 General Appropriations Act "in record time."

"We will try to finish the budget before the end of September, very ambitious schedule, to send it right away to the Senate because we hope for the first time in history, we can sign the budget maybe late November or mid-November as a sign of unity by our country," he said.

The House is set to conduct its first budget hearing this Friday, with the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) tackling the financing of the budget, growth forecasts, sectoral priorities, policies, and relevant initiatives.

The DBCC is composed of the Department of Budget and Management, the National Economic and Development Authority, the Department of Finance, and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. — BM, GMA News