House budget deliberations continue Thursday

The deliberations of the House committee on appropriations continues a day after party leaders at the House of Representatives recommended the return of the proposed 2026 budget to the Department of Budget and Management for review.

The party leaders made the recommendation after several members of the House noticed allocations for projects already completed.

Palawan Rep Jose Alvarez, vice chairperson of the House committee on appropriations, was one of those who made the recommendation but present at the deliberations Thursday morning.

He said the secretaries of the DBM and the Department of Public Works and Highways called House Speaker Martin Romualdez and the House committee on appropriations to ask that the budget deliberations continue.

"9:00 kagabi, tumawag na sila na sila na lang pupunta rito. Ayusin nila," Alvarez said in an ambush interview.

"We gave them 10 days to do it," he added.

Alvarez also said that members of the House are willing to work overtime on the proposed budget to ensure that the budget calendar is on track.

"On track pa 'yun. Kasi hindi naman, kung kailangan talaga ma-extend, handa naman kami magtrabaho rito at walang problema," he said.—AOL, GMA Integrated News