Solons seek budget hike for DTI, slash for TESDA in 2022

The House Committee on Appropriations is pushing to increase the budget of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) next year as lawmakers see the need for more funds to support the recovery of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) from the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the same time, the House panel wants a reduction in the 2022 budget of Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and defer its approval over issues of poor utilization and alleged questionable practices.

In his manifestation, House Deputy Speaker Wesley Gatchalian moved to increase the budget of the DTI under the agency’s Tier 2 projects, totaling to P1.623 billion.

“If there is one agency that we really need to support during this pandemic, I believe one of them will be the Department of Trade and Industry,” Gatchalian said.

The DTI is proposing a budget of P23.71 billion for 2022, which includes the P13.642 billion or 57.56% allocated for TESDA, one of its attached agencies.

“If we actually remove TESDA from the overall budget we could see that DTI for 2022 is only requesting around P8 billion,” Gatchalian said.

“Knowing a lot of our MSMEs are badly affected by this pandemic, I would like to manifest… that the budget of the DTI should be increased in order to support the thousands of MSMEs, especially the micro and small affected during the pandemic. We need to give at least a total of P1.6 billion in addition to the budget of DTI,” he said.

The House deputy speaker said the additional budget could help the DTI’s “One Town, One Project” or OTOP, a stimulus program for MSMEs to drive inclusive local economic growth.

The additional budget can also help the DTI’s Go Lokal project, a market access platform for MSMEs.

Gatchalian said increasing the budget of the DTI can also support its Shared Service Facilities program, a means to improve MSME competitiveness by providing machinery, equipment, tools, systems, accessories and other auxiliary items, skills and knowledge under a shared system.

He also emphasized the need to fund the creation of an E-Commerce Bureau “as early as now” since the law creating the bureau has already passed the lower chamber and is being taken up in the Senate.

“It’s good to put a budget as early as now for the creation of the E-Commerce Bureau to assist the DTI on their manpower requirements so we can protect consumers transacting online,” Gatchalian said.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, for his part, said that the agency needs at least P10 billion more to extend P10,000 in loans to some one million registered MSMEs.

“Depende sa budget na maibibigay ‘yung dami ng matutulungan natin (The number of beneficiaries will depend on amount of budget which will be given),” Lopez said.

TESDA budget hearing deferred

In his manifestation delivered by Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas, House Minority Leader Joseph Stephen Paduano said that TESDA’s continuing appropriations has increased significantly in 2017 to 2020 compared to previous years.

“This indicates poor utilization of the budget depriving students of the benefits due them,” Paduano said.

And since 2017, TESDA’s unused appropriations and the unobligated allotment also rose compared to previous years.

“This indicates poor planning and poor implementation of the programs and projects of the agency,” Paduano said.

The House Minority leader also noted that the Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged TESDA for its alleged “misuse” of public funds.

Paduano, in particular, cited the 2019 COA report that TESDA transferred more than P3 billion program funds to the Philippine International Trading Corporation (PITC) for the procurement of various goods and services.

“However, because the transfers were made late, it appears that the agency may have just taken advantage of the procurement outsourcing services to keep the unutilized program funds to remain intact, thus making the PITC as depositary of unutilized funds for delayed or unimplemented programs/projects,” Paduano said.

The House Minority leader also cited the fund transfers, amounting to P160 million, through Notice of Transfer Allocation (NTA) from TESDA central office to its regional offices for the implementation of Executive Order No. 70, creating the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC). 

Paduano said the transfer of funds is “highly questionable for lack of proper authority/legal basis and the absence of appropriate guidelines as to how this fund shall be utilized, likewise exposing these funds to possible misuse or misappropriation.”

“These are only some of the questionable practices that, in this humble Representation’s opinion, show incredible gall of some officers of TESDA,” he said.

“With that, I manifest my intention to have the consideration of the budget of TESDA deferred, and its budget reduced to a level that its officers can reasonably accomplish,” he added.

TESDA Director General Isidro Lapeña, meanwhile, insisted that there was no transfer of funds made to NTF-ELCAC and that the “downloading was done to TESDA regional offices for the implementation of scholarships.”

In its answer to COA, TESDA said that P146 million was taken out of the TESDA Scholarship Fund for distribution to regional offices subject to TESDA scholarship rules and regulations.

However, COA said this is also questionable.

“Special clients of TESDA Scholarship Program… is already all-encompassing, and actually includes those targeted beneficiaries in support of EO No. 70, hence to transfer funds… is questionable since the regular training programs of TESDA can readily cater to the needs of targeted clients,” it said.

Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin supported Paduano’s manifestation to reduce the budget of TESDA and have it deferred.

“TESDA as an institution is very good. It’s programs are laudable, they have helped a lot of people. However, you cannot run an institution if you do not have the sense of urgency. The point here is budget utilization and filing up of positions,” Garin said.

“Hindi pwedeng pabayaan nating natutulog yung pera ng sambayanang Pilipino habang marami ang nangangailangan nito,” she said.

(We cannot allow the funds of the Filipino people to stay idle while many are in dire need of these funds.)

“With this I second the motion to defer consideration of the budget of TESDA and look at ways by which this can be maximally utilized by the DTI…,” Garin said.

Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo moved to “terminate the budget hearing of the DTI and its attached agencies, except for TESDA.”—LDF, GMA News