House panel swiftly ends OVP budget deliberation

The House Committee on Appropriations on Wednesday quickly ended deliberations on the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) P2.385-billion proposed budget for 2024 without fielding questions due to parliamentary courtesy.

Citing "long-standing tradition," Senior Deputy Majority Leader and Ilocos Norte Representative Sandro Marcos moved to terminate the deliberation after the OVP's presentation of its proposed 2024 budget.

“In line with the long-standing tradition of giving the OVP the parliamentary courtesy, I move to terminate the deliberations on the budget of the OVP,” said Marcos, son of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.

At least 21 lawmakers voted in favor of Marcos' motion.

Three members of the Makabayan bloc, led by House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro, objected to the motion.

Castro repeatedly asked the committee to allow them to make a manifestation or explain their objection on the motion to terminate the proceedings.

“I have the right to explain why I voted no,” Castro said.

In response, Davao de Oro Representative Carmen Zamora, the presiding officer of the committee, told Castro, “With all due respect, may we request the Honorable Castro to please submit the manifestation.”

“This budget hearing is suspended,” Zamora added.

The Makabayan bloc accused the committee of censorship.

“Ito po ay pambubusal sa Makabayan. Nakita niyo naman po ang ginawa sa amin,” Castro told reporters.

The bloc had wanted Vice President Sara Duterte, who attended the deliberation, to explain the P125-million confidential fund that the OVP got and spent in 2022, even if such item is not provided under that year's national budget law.

House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela party-list Representative Arlene Brosas said she would have questioned Duterte's appointment as co-chairperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the state-run anti-insurgency task force.

According to Brosas, having a co-chairperson is not provided under Executive Order (EO) 70, which established the NTF-ELCAC in 2018 during the presidency of Duterte's father, Rodrigo Duterte.

“This is not provided under EO 70. Imbento po ang posisyon na ito sa NTF-ELCAC na nagkakaso sa mga sa tunay na naglilingkod sa bayan, mga aktibista, mga progresibong grupo, sa mga nagtatanong ukol sa mga isyu na kinakaharap ng bayan,” Brosas said in a separate interview.

(It is a made-up position. The task force just goes after legitimate development workers, activists, progressive groups who talk about critical issues we are facing.)

“These are the questions we want to ask. We cannot understand why we are being stopped from asking questions,” she added.

The Makabayan bloc can still field their questions to the OVP when the budget reaches the plenary level deliberations.

Plenary deliberations on the proposed national budget, however, is different from the committee level since it is one of the House members who sponsors and defends the budget of the subject government agency from questions fielded by the rest of House members.

At the committee level, it is the head of the agency and his or her deputies who answer the questions fielded by lawmakers. —KBK, GMA Integrated News