House, Senate ratify proposed P5.024-T budget for 2022

The Senate and House of Representatives on Wednesday ratified the bicameral conference committee report on the budget bill proposing P5.024 trillion for fiscal year 2022.

After lawmakers reconciled the disagreeing provisions earlier in the day, the bicam report was ratified during their respective plenary sessions in the afternoon.

Senator Sonny Angara, chairman of the Senate committee on finance, said the education sector gets the biggest allocation in the budget.

For Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Zarate, the proposed 2022 national budget is still not meant to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stressing that it needs further improvement, Zarate said the bicameral conference committee should have completely defunded the NTF-ELCAC instead of allocating more than P16 billion.

"These funds, rather than be spent on red tagging, spreading of fake news and pork barrel, can be better utilized in ramping up our COVID response, especially with new rampaging variants and helping our suffering people," Zarate said in a statement.

'Too small'

He also pointed out that the increase in the Department of Health's budget was too small, saying that the budget of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police are still bigger than that of the task force.

Angara, chairperson of the Senate finance committee, earlier said at least P20 to P30 billion was added to the proposed budget of the agency, which includes allotment for special risk allowances of healthcare workers and COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots.

During his report to his colleagues on the bicam version of the 2022 General Appropriations Bill (GAB), Angara said the panel retained the fund increases for the COVID-19 Laboratory Network Commodities, DOH epidemiology and surveillance program; purchase of drugs, medicines and vaccines that will be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and DOH’s Health Facilities Enhancement Program.

House committee on appropriations chairman Eric Yap has said that at least P50 billion was allotted for SRAs of medical frontliners while another P50 billion was allocated for booster shots.

Earlier, Yap said Congress was targeting to allocate P50 billion for health workers' SRAs.

Zarate also claimed that only P53.478 million was deducted from the budget of the Office of the President when in fact, there is still a huge allocation for intelligence and confidential funds which can be realigned to aid and other needs of the citizens amid the pandemic. 

In her manifestation, Gabriela party-list Arlene Brosas also expressed her disappointment with the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed 2022 national budget.

She said the funds added to the health sector was too small despite the threat of the Omicron coronavirus variant.

"Napakaliit ng dinagdag na badyet para sa kalusugan sa kabila ng malakas na panawagan ng mamamayan, kasama ang mga doktor, nars, at iba pang frontline health workers," Brosas said.

(The additional budget for the health sector was too small despite the call of our medical frontliners.)

She also echoed the sentiment of Zarate that the funds allocated for the NTF-ELCAC should have been appropriated for those affected by the pandemic and even calamities.

Meanwhile, ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro lamented the minimal budget increase for the DepEd as, according to her, it will not ensure safe face-to-face classes next year.

She also said the P200 million added to the budget of the Commission on Elections would not suffice in providing additional honorarium for poll workers.

"Sa bahagi po ng edukasyon, P2.56 billion na minimal budget increase sa DepEd na hindi tumutugon sa requirement sa ligtas na balik paaralan para sa face-to-face classes sa susunod na taon. P200 million na dagdag sa COMELEC na kapos na kapos sa P2 billion na kahilingan ng mga volunteer poll workers na mga guro natin para sa dagdag na honorarium," Castro said.

(In education, the P2.56 billion minimal budget increase for DepEd does not address the requirements for a safe implementation of face-to-face classes by next year. The P200 million increase for the Comelec budget is also not enough for the additional honorarium for poll workers.)

Moreover, Angara informed the senators that there are P5 billion funding for the social amelioration program; up to P25.018 billion for social pension for indigent senior citizens; funds for Department of Labor and Employment’s Integrated Livelihood Program; P39.865 billion for the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations, and funds for the Emergency Repatriation Fund of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).

Under the last budget of the Duterte administration, Angara said the Department of Public Works and Highways’s operations will receive more than P700 billion, in line with the “Build, Build, Build” program of the government.

Upon the interpellation of Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, Angara informed his colleagues that the NTF-ELCAC will receive approximately P17 billion for 2022.

Adjournment

In his message during the last day of session for this year, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco noted that in the past year, "the House of Representatives carried the duty of crafting policies to shepherd the Philippines towards recovery."

Velasco said as of December 14, a total of 133 Republic Acts have been approved. He added that the chamber also approved 930 measures on final reading and adopted 266 resolutions.

"If there is one thing that the pandemic has shown us, it is that we are stronger than we knew. We are more capable than we realized. We have seen that there is more that unites us than divides us. We have seen that our legislative work is vital to our pandemic response," he said. —RSJ/AOL, GMA News