P141B flood control projects in 2023, 2024 came from unprogrammed funds —Suansing

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released P141 billion for flood control projects in 2023 and 2024 from unprogrammed appropriations (UA), House appropriations panel chairperson and Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Suansing said Tuesday.

Suansing, the budget sponsor for the DBM, made the disclosure during the plenary deliberations on the general principles and provisions of House Bill 4058 or the P6.7 trillion proposed budget for 2026.

The DBM defines unprogrammed appropriations as those that provide standby authority to incur additional agency obligations for priority programs or projects when revenue collection exceeds targets, and when additional grants or foreign funds are generated.

In simple terms, unprogrammed appropriations are akin to planned household purchases that may only proceed if extra money is available, either from additional income, like bonuses or from loans.

The budget bill realigned the P255 billion flood control budget under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to other basic services in compliance with President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s directive amid alleged fund misuse.

“The UA releases for flood control projects for 2023 is P34 billion, and for 2024, it is P107 billion. So across 2023 and 2024, the UA releases for the flood control project is P141 billion. And our distinguished colleague (ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio) is right, these projects are not stated as a line item,” Suansing said.

Tinio, in response, said the DBM should commit to publishing the specific flood control projects and their corresponding proponents funded under the UA.

“The DBM should publish all these flood control project releases under UA, and even all those releases funded by the UA in the spirit of transparency,” Tinio said.

“The are worth hundreds of billions. Hindi alam ng publiko kung saan napunta,” Tinio added.

(The public does not know where these billions went.)

Tinio cited the earlier revelation by dismissed Bulacan district engineer Henry Alcantara before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee that the DPWH Bulacan First District Engineering Office granted a P600 million flood control project to Senator Joel Villanueva in 2023. 

Senator Panfilo Lacson also earlier said that the P600 million was found under the UA.

Villanueva, however, has since denied that he pocketed public funds off flood control projects, saying, “I am ready, and my office is ready, to be investigated that the truth may come out. I am ready to clear these issues before any forum to prove that these allegations are wrong, malicious and pure lies.”

Still, Tinio said such the P600 million incident is a good lesson to be transparent going forward.

“Sa UA natagpuan ‘yung P600 million pesos na flood control projects daw pala nung isang Senador. So, ano pa kaya ang makikita natin doon? Can we have the list and can that be made available to the public as well?,” Tinio said.

(We found the P600 million of a certain Senator under the unprogrammed appropriations. What else can we find there?)

Suansing replied in the affirmative and committed to releasing the copies of the Special Allotment Release Orders (SARO) for the disbursement of the P141 billion flood control projects funded under the UA. —LDF, GMA Integrated News