For 1st time in PHL history, Duterte to submit 2018 budget on SONA day

President Rodrigo Duterte is planning to submit his administration's proposed P3.767 trillion budget for 2018 to Congress on the day of his second State of the Nation Address on July 24, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said on Friday.

During the Mindanao Hour, Diokno said it would be the first time for a president to do so on the first day of Congress' session.

"The President plans to submit the budget on the day of the SONA itself okay, so that’s a first time in Philippine history. And so, why are we doing this? So we can have an early start for 2018," he said.

The biggest chunk of the 2018 budget will go to the education sector with P691.1 billion. But Diokno added that it would also include P10 billion for the rehabilitation of Marawi City.

“Now in 2018, there’s a 10 billion already set aside okay, for the Marawi recovery and rehabilitation program. So next year, the NDRRM fund – that’s the disaster risk—Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund—will have a 25.5 billion allocation for 2018, of which P10 billion is set aside for Marawi,” he said.

“And then in 2019, an additional budget yet to be determined will be proposed okay, or maybe even 2020, depending on the recovery phase okay,” he added.

Diokno added that the 2018 budget also allocated a big amount for the country’s infrastructure program, with P643.3 billion for the Department of Public Works and Highways and P73.8 billion for the Department of Transportation.

“Now this budget is consistent with President Duterte’s Build, Build, Build program to usher in the Golden Age of Infrastructure in the Philippines and his desire to develop the Filipino youth into an agile, competent workforce for the future,” he said. — MDM/RSJ, GMA News