Yap on distributing equal infra budgets to districts in 2021: 'Malabo talaga'

House committee on appropriations chairperson Eric Yap on Wednesday said distributing "equal" infrastructure allocations to different congressional districts under the P4.5-trillion proposed national budget for 2021 is not feasible.

"'Yung uneven allocations, na-address siya. May ibang mga tumaas pero hindi natin kayang gawin even eh na lahat sila pantay-pantay," Yap said in an interview after the bicam panel approved its report on the budget.

"Malabo talaga ipantay-pantay ang mga district dahil may malaking districts, may maliit, mayroong iba-ibang terrain," he added. "Sa Albay, may ginagawa po tayong expressway dito, normal po na tataas. Katulad sa Benguet, mayroon po tayong nagko-collapse na kalsada even without typhoon ha, without calamity nagko-collapse 'yun dahil mountainous 'yung lugar na 'yun."

Big-ticket Build, Build, Build projects falling within some districts should also be considered a factor on the distribution of infrastructure budget.

"We don't look at the district, we look at the projects," Yap said.

Senator Panfilo Lacson previously said the allies of new Speaker Lord Allan Velasco got increased infrastructure budgets while those on the side of previous Speaker Taguig-Pateros Representative Alan Peter Cayetano received cuts.

Meanwhile, Senate committee on finance chairperson Sonny Angara assured that there is no "pork" in the proposed 2021 budget, which Congress is set to ratify this afternoon.

"I think we complied with the Supreme Court decision on pork barrel. We avoided lump sums as much as possible, we tried to itemize them," he said.

"There is no post-enactment identification or participation on the part of legislators," he added.

Yap previously projected that the budget bill may reach the President's table by December 18, if ratified by Congress this Wednesday.—AOL, GMA News