Senate OKs climate body’s budget, but tells it to submit post-travel reports

The Senate has finally approved the Climate Change Commission's (CCC) proposed budget for 2023 but the body was compelled to submit reports on its 20 travels from April to November this year.

Last week, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda asked to defer the plenary deliberations of the CCC's budget, citing the absence of its two commissioners.

The two other commissioners, Rachel Anne Herrera and Albert Dela Cruz,  are both in Egypt to attend the Climate Change Conference (COP 27) slated from November 6 to November 18.

During the plenary debates on Wednesday, Legarda said she would no longer interpellate as she was presiding over the deliberations, but requested the CCC to submit the following:

• reports on their trip
• the status of negotiations including the loss and damage in the agenda in the Egypt talks
• all funds and projects accessed by the Philippine government since the creation of the CCC

Legarda likewise asked the CCC to produce a report on the travels that each commissioner has embarked on in 2022.

She said she will introduce a special provision in the CCC's 2023 budget that will require all the staff, technical advisers, consultants and the commissioners to produce a post-travel report to be sent to the senators.

Legarda said this will not only apply to the CCC but all agencies in the Executive Department so that these reports from the conferences that they have attended can be used for policies.

'Very little to show'

Senator Imee Marcos, who sponsored the CCC's budget, also took a swipe at the body's accomplishment.

"Indeed, this law was enacted... in 2009 and 13 years after the fact, there's very little to show except for constant travel. From April to November of this year, 20 trips were recorded by the CCC," Marcos disclosed.

Further, Marcos said the CCC's mainstreaming at the local government level has been cited for its mere 18-percent accomplishment.

Legarda echoed Marcos' disappointment, saying mainstreaming, disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptations and mitigation, especially adaptation in a vulnerable country like the Philippines, is the main focus of the task at hand for the CCC.

"So perhaps, instead of traveling abroad, where we even spend too much carbon footprint, we should focus on mainstreaming DRR-CCAM to every LGU so that we can measure every quarter the 18 percent, if that's accurate. That's quite dismal, we should increase it right away. After all, you've been there for more than 10 years," Legarda said.

Apart from this, Marcos raised the P690-million unexpended People's Survival Fund.

The lawmaker said the initial P1 billion was released in 2015 but until today, the CCC has yet to spend more than half of it.

Citing the CCC's explanation, Marcos said the Department of Finance has taken over the management of the said funds and nothing has been granted to them since 2017.

However, Marcos said she believes it is not "entirely true" as there was a P93-million project in Sarangani that was granted by the DOF in 2018.

"Akala ko sarado na nung 2017, bakit 2018 nag-approve pa sila?" Marcos asked.

She then suggested an audit of the People's Survival Fund.

Instead of grilling the CCC over several issues, Legarda said she will just deliver a privilege speech next week where they will suspend the Senate rules so the commissioners can directly answer her questions.

Marcos said this will be a "more opportune and proper moment" for questioning the CCC's programs.

"Indeed, it has very little to show except for international travel and its carbon footprint," Marcos quipped.

The Senate plenary eventually approved the CCC's P128-billion budget for 2023.

Prior to its approval, Marcos suggested disallowing travels for CCC "unless absolutely necessary."

Legarda said she will leave it to Marcos' judgment but at least a post-travel report should be submitted.

Marcos said they will craft that provision and will ensure that it will be indicated in the 2023 General Appropriations Act.

Senior citizens body

Meanwhile, the plenary deliberations of the 2023 budget of the National Commission of Senior Citizens was deferred due to the absence of three of its commissioners.

It was Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel who moved to postpone the budget deliberations of the NCSC to Thursday afternoon.

According to Marcos, sponsor of the commission's budget, only NCSC Chairperson Franklin Quijano, Commissioner Edwin Espejo, and Enriqueta Rodeles are present during Wednesday's plenary deliberations.

NCSC Commissioners Ida Patron, Reymar Mansilungan, Ranier Cruz are not around for the budget deliberations, she mentioned. — BM, GMA Integrated News