Probe into admin's savings allegedly turning into pork barrel urged

Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate on Wednesday urged the Commission on Audit and the Office of the Ombudsman to probe whether the supposed savings of the government are being utilized as pork barrel.

According to Zarate, there is the National Budget Circular 586 which collects the expected savings from the 2020 General Appropriations Act.

"This NBC 586 covers released allotments under the FY 2020 GAA which remain unobligated until May 15, 2021, but not expressly earmarked for the implementation of programs/activities/projects addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and can be realigned by the President as he see fit," Zarate said in a press statement.

"This is a Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP)-like savings and a form of presidential pork, which was already proscribed by the Supreme Court," he claimed.

Zarate pointed out that Filipinos could not be blamed for thinking that the Duterte administration is trying to create an "enormous war chest" for the 2022 elections "to ensure that the Duterte clique's influence and control extend beyond June 30 next year."

Meanwhile, Bayan Muna chairperson Neri Colmenares said such type of savings, due to underspending of some government agencies, can be realigned to the projects of the administration's candidates; therefore they were not cases of inefficiency but of corruption.

"It is strange that at the very time when (the) government needs to spend, it underspends," Colmenares said.

"Worse, these so-called savings could easily be realigned to 'augment' projects at the discretion of Pres. Duterte and the Executive Branch," he added.

Colmenares dared the Duterte administration to report the overall savings since 2017 so that the public could be informed where these savings went.

"The COA and the Ombudsman must investigate if much-needed funds for COVID are being used for the premature election campaigning of Duterte candidates," he said.

"Budgetary items such as the Allowances for Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) is vulnerable to becoming pork barrel when distributed to mayors and supporters all over the country by Duterte candidates. It is no different from the PDAF handouts prohibited by the Supreme Court after the Napoles scandal in 2013," he added.

Meanwhile, House Deputy Speaker and Cagayan de Oro City Representative Rufus Rodriguez said this issue could also be tackled during budget hearings.

"The representatives, if they found that in some agencies may fund pala diyan at the discretion of the department secretary then that's very difficult, bakit nakalusot 'yan? It's like the pork barrel system," Rodriguez answered at the Ugnayan sa Batasan forum when asked about the matter.

"That can be questioned also in the budget hearing," he added.—AOL, GMA News