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Spreading the cheer: Congressmen leak nearly P900M of 'pork' outside their districts
By JAMAICA JANE PASCUAL, GMA News Research
When asked how many mountains the group has crossed, Kapitan Beliano Tanglanan laughs a little, “Siguro mga lima na [Maybe five.]” He sighs, then says, “Hindi ko na binibilang [I don’t count anymore.]”
The group of seven habal-habal—local motorcycles altered to allow more passengers—is on the way to Barangay Titik, traveling through mountains of gravel, rocks and mud, mud, mud. They have been on the road for five hours, and they are only halfway to their destination.
This is what residents of Barangay Titik in Leon Postigo, Zamboanga del Norte have to endure each time they have to go to and from the town center.
Titik is a remote barangay in Leon Postigo, one of the Philippines’ poorest municipalities where eight in 10 families are poor.
The roads to Titik, better described as mud paths, do little to ease the poverty. In fact, residents say, these roads may even be the very cause of their impoverished state.
“Kung may kalsada lang sana na maaayos, baka hindi lang sana limitado sa pagsasaka ang trabaho ng mga tao sa barangay namin [If only there were a decent roads, maybe the livelihood of the people in our barangay would not be limited to farming],” Kapitan Beliano says.
In a place like Titik, every little bit helps. And every little bit taken hurts.
One of the findings in a study of pork barrel allocations by GMA News Research is that at least a million pesos of pork barrel funds that should have been allocated for Zamboanga del Norte’s Third District, which includes Leon Postigo, was instead allotted for a road project in Metro Manila.
GMA News Research’s “Pork Chopped: An Analysis of Legislators’ Pork Barrel Allocations” found out that at least P892 million of pork barrel funds of various district representatives were allotted to projects outside the congressmen’s territories.
The study covers pork barrel allocations from the years 2003 to 2005 and 2009 to 2010, culled from the database of the Department of Budget and Management.
Professor Edna Co, dean of the University of the Philippines-National College of Public Administration and Governance, says pork barrel of district representatives should be allotted for the benefit of their respective constituents.
“Unang-una, dapat ito ay gamitin niya sa mga mamamayan… na nakapaloob sa kanyang sariling distrito [First of all, pork barrel funds should be used to benefit the people within a representative’s own district],” Professor Co says.
“Ikalawa, yung mahusay na paggamit doon sa amount. Tama ba ang paggamit? Ito ba yung prayoridad na proyekto, o ito ba ay personal choices lang ng isang congressman [Second, the fund should be used properly. Is this the priority project, or is this the personal choice of the congressman]?” she adds.
According to former Cavite first district Rep. (and now Transportation chief) Joseph Emilio Abaya, former chairman of the House appropriations committee, there is nothing wrong “technically” with allotting pork barrel outside a representative’s congressional jurisdiction.
“Technically, even for today's General Appropriations Act, it is allowed. However, for hard funds, it is required that the congressman of the district [the other district that will benefit] should consent,” Abaya says.
While “technically” there may be no violation, as Abaya insists, the Aquino government is concerned enough to issue specific rules about this practice.
The DBM now requires a paper trail on allocations outside a representative’s district.
In February, the Budget Department released a circular that sets the guidelines on the release of funds chargeable against the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) for fiscal year 2012.
But unlike the previous national budget circulars, NBC 537 directly addresses the allocation of representatives outside their respective jurisdiction. It reads: “2.4 Any program/project identified by district representative to be implemented outside his or her congressional jurisdiction shall have the written concurrence of the district representatives of the recipient/beneficiary congressional district.”
Says Abaya, “Hindi ko alam ang dahilan kung bakit maglalagay (ng pork barrel) sa ibang distrito, kasi I'm sure lahat ng distrito nangangailangan. Kung anong extra ay doon pa rin [I do not know why pork barrel fund is allotted outside the district, because I’m sure all districts need them, even the extra funds].”
“So mahirap pag-isipan kung anong kadahilanan kung bakit nilalabas sa distrito [So, it’s really hard to think of a reason why funds are allotted outside the districts],” he says.
But there are rare instances, Abaya says, when congressmen allot outside their jurisdiction because they exchange their “soft” funds for the “hard” funds of other congressmen.
“Hard” projects are the infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, school buildings, among others; “soft” projects, on the other hand, are funds for financial assistance to scholarships, medical aid and livelihood programs.
For example, in places like Metro Manila where almost all roads are already paved, some of its representatives will trade their infrastructure funds for financial assistance.
“One is to one,” Abaya explains. “One million soft is traded for one million hard. Kasi pagdating sa budget naman [when it comes to the budget], these are just pesos crossing each other,” he says.
This practice is allowed, Abaya says, but discouraged. “Bihirang bihira yan… DBM highly discourages it, too, dahil in terms of accounting, nagugulo [This practice rarely happens. DBM highly discourages it, too, because it would create confusion in terms of accounting].”
Of the P892-million pork funds that had been allocated outside of the representatives’ territories, at least P632 million was allotted to various national institutions.
These were institutions mostly located in Metro Manila. The way it works in the pork barrel system, funds are allocated and earmarked for scholarships and medical assistance for the representatives’ constituents who may avail of services from these institutions.
These include hospitals like the Philippine General Hospital, National Kidney and Transplant Institute and the Philippine Heart Center.
The University of the Philippines System and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines are among the state universities and colleges (SUCs) named as beneficiaries.
At least P109 million of financial assistance was allocated to local SUCs and hospitals not within the district representatives’ jurisdiction but are located close enough for access in neighboring provinces.
However, there are instances when people from outside a congressman’s jurisdiction become the beneficiaries.
“Yung soft [financial assistance] is not as restrictive (as hard projects),” Abaya says. “Let's say I have soft funds in PGH, kung merong makiusap sa akin na tingin ko dapat kong tulungan na taga-Surigao [if someone from Surigao asks for my help, and I think she deserves it]… then I could write a referral letter for her. She gets treated at PGH charged to my fund. So, technically, I am deploying my soft funds to Surigao.”
He adds, “I think wala namang illegal [there’s nothing illegal with that]. Just make sure the person is deserving of help. Then, okay lang yun [it’s ok].”
| Breakdown of pork barrel funds allocated outside the representatives’ provinces | |
|---|---|
| allotted outside their respective districts, no clear connection to constituents | Php 150,295,000 |
| allotted to national agencies, usually based in Metro Manila | Php 632,067,839 |
| allotted to institutions in neighboring provinces/ areas | Php 109,370,000 |
| TOTAL | Php 891,732,839 |
Those who have more, get more
From the study, GMA News Research found out that at least 10 percent of these “outside the district” allocations — more than P80 million — was given by congressmen to places even better off than their own districts.
The allocations were for multipurpose buildings, roads and pavements, and financial assistance to local government units outside their own provinces.
House Deputy Speaker and Quezon Fourth District Rep. Lorenzo “Erin” Tañada III finds nothing wrong with this.
“Well, wala naman talagang masama. Pero of course, tatanungin ng mga kadistrito nung congressman, ng mga constituents niya [Well, there’s really nothing wrong. But of course, questions will be raised by the congressman’s constituents],” Tanada says. “But in reality, there’s really nothing wrong as long as he is able to meet lahat ng pangangailangan ng kanyang constituents [But in reality, there’s really nothing wrong as long as he is able to meet all of his constituents’ needs].”
Zamboanga del Norte’s district representatives made at least three allocations worth P3 million to the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City in 2004 and 2005.
In 2004, Cecilia Jalosjos, representative of the first district of Zamboanga del Norte, allotted P2 million for the construction of a road project and a multipurpose building inside the NBP.
In 2005, Rep. Cesar Jalosjos of the third district of Zamboanga del Norte allotted P1 million of his pork barrel fund to the NBP. This was for the asphalting of a 1-kilometer road inside the maximum security compound.
Cecilia and Cesar are siblings of Romeo Jalosjos, who was detained at the NBP from 1999 up to March 2009 for a rape conviction.
Cesar says his visits to his brother at NBP made him see the state of the correctional facility.
“When we get inside the gate of Bilibid, it’s muddy and filthy, and it stinks a lot,” Cesar says.
He says his brother Romeo asked him for some help.
“Sabi ni Romy, ‘Can you help and pave this spot lang, kahit na manipis? Para lang malinis yung (madaraanan) ng mga tao’ [Romy told me, ‘Can you help fund the construction of a particular pavement in Bilibid? Just a thin overlay will do. So that at least there will be a decent walkway for the people’],” Cesar says. “It’s not for the prisoners, but more for the visitors.”
Cesar notes that a lot of people contributed for the road project, including his sister Cecilia.
“Later on, nagpagawa kami ng tennis court at the expense of my brother. Dalawang tennis court [Two tennis courts were later built at the expense of my brother],” he says. “Yung akin yung asphalt lang [I helped only with the asphalting of the road].”
In Barangay Titik in Leon Postigo, a place within Rep. Jalosjos’s third district, roads are badly needed as well.
Based on local government data, 9 percent of the roads in Leon Postigo is gravel, and the remaining 91 percent is categorized as “earth” or dirt roads.
In terms of road condition, 91.55 percent was identified as either “bad” or “poor.”
“Meron namang daanan, pero sira siya, hindi concrete. Yung iba, hindi naman gravel, and it could easily be damaged during heavy rain [There is an existing road, but it is in bad condition and not concrete. The other parts are not even gravel, and it could easily be damaged during heavy rain],” says Leon Postigo Mayor Roland Tablezo.
Any fund that goes their way is very welcome. “So maybe it could be realized only if we have some help from our congressmen, from our senators and, maybe provincial government also,” he adds.
Leon Postigo received allocations worth P8.33 million from the pork funds of different legislators in the five years covered by the study.
The pork barrel allotted for road projects in Leon Postigo amounted to less than a million pesos, or 11 percent of the total pork funds that went to the municipality.
Pork Barrel Allocation for the Municipality of Leon Postigo, Zamboanga del
Norte
2003-2005; 2009, 2010
| Project | Amount | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| schoolbuildings | 2,890,000 | 34.69% |
| financial assistance (unspecified program/project, identified LGU) | 2,400,000 | 28.81% |
| MPBs | 1,450,000 | 17.41% |
| roads and pavements | 900,000 | 10.80% |
| water supply | 510,000 | 6.12% |
| other structures | 180,000 | 2.16% |
| TOTAL | 8,330,000 | 100.00% |
Source: GMA News Research analysis on congressional allocations
“[The municipality’s budget] will cover all the programs and projects of the government. Sa mga bata, buntis, sa health. So mahirap natin makasya, especially sa mga daan [Funds are allocated for children, pregnant women, health programs. It’s difficult to provide for everything with scarce resources, specially for road projects],” the mayor says.
If he has the money, the mayor is clear where it should go: “Roads dapat [It must be roads.] Because we already have daycare centers, we already have the school. Ang road naman ang ating focus [Roads should now be our focus].”
GMA News Research discussed with Dr. Milwida Guevara the cases of pork funds allocated outside the districts of congressmen. Dr. Guevara is one of the founding members of the non-government advocacy group Movement for Good Governance and a former Finance undersecretary.
District representatives’ biases should not affect the way they do their jobs, including allocations for pork barrel projects, Dr. Guevara says.
“Dapat, ang kanyang pagde-desisyon, yung interes ng kanyang kinakatawan. E bakit yung hindi niya kinakatawan yun ang kanyang pangangalagaan, di ba? Eh merong sariling kinatawan yun [The congressman’s decisions should be in the interest of the people he represents. Why allot his pork barrel somewhere else? Other places have their own representatives],” she says.
“Kawawa naman yung mga tao na bumoto sa kanya di ba? [It’s not fair for the people who voted for the representative],” she adds.
But Rep. Cesar Jalosjos says he thinks it is not unfair to his constituents if he allotted his pork barrel to the Bilibid project because it helped a lot of people.
“No, it’s not wrong. It’s not morally incorrect. It’s what I see is needed,” Jalosjos says.
He points out that his pork barrel is in fact too small for road projects in his district.
“It does not make any difference to pave a half-kilometer of road that will cost 5 to 10 million [pesos] in concreting,” he says.
He explains that he could always ask help from the different departments—public works, education, agriculture, or any other agency—to get more funds.
“And [my constituents] seldom also ask for roads because it’s too big for my allocation for infrastructure,” he says. "They would rather have their covered court or their barangay hall or their daycare, at least in the immediate they can already take care of the people.”
The biggest of the “outside district” allocations
From the five-year pork barrel database, GMA News Research ranked all the allocations made outside of the districts.
The top three in terms of amount for a single project were allocations for a multipurpose building in Marillac Hills in Muntinlupa City, a road project in Isabela province, and another road project in Cagayan de Oro City.
| Year | Representative | Project | Province of the Representative | Province where the project is located | details | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Jose De Venecia Jr. | construction of multipurpose buildings | Pangasinan | Metro Manila | Marilac Hills, Alabang, Muntinlupa (Phase I and II) | 20,500,000 |
| 2009 | Juan Miguel Arroyo | Road opening | Pampanga | Isabela | San Antonio, Cabagan | 15,000,000 |
| 2003 | Georgilu Yumul-Hermida | repair/rehabilitation of road | Quezon | Misamis Oriental | CDO-Bukidnon Road (Carmen Airport Road), Cagayan de Oro City | 12,000,000 |
MPB In Marillac Hills
Some P20.5 million was allotted in 2004 for the construction of a multipurpose building in Marillac Hills in Alabang, Muntinlupa City by then-Pangasinan fourth district representative and House Speaker Jose De Venecia Jr.
Marillac Hills is a DSWD temporary shelter for distressed girls and young women who need social care and protection. The center was founded in1967.
There were two allocations for this project: P13.5 million for Phase 1 and P7 million for Phase 2.
Marillac Hills is among the favorite charities of Gina de Venecia, the wife of the former Speaker who succeeded him in the congressional post.
She would often celebrate her birthday in Marillac Hills.
GMA News tried to get an interview with the former Speaker but he refused to comment on the story.
Road in Isabela
In 2009, then-Pampanga second district Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo allotted P15 million of his pork barrel funds to a road opening and graveling project in barangay San Antonio in Cabagan, a municipality in the first district of Isabela.
Rodolfo Albano III was then the representative of the first district of Isabela.
Albano was among those who consistently voted to dismiss the impeachment complaints against then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Mikey’s mother.
Albano’s father, Rodolfo Jr., was appointed by Mrs. Arroyo as chairman of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) in 2004.
Rodolfo III’s brother Antonio held several positions in government as well. He was undersecretary and executive director of Malacañang’s Office of Political Coalition Affairs and head executive assistant of the ERC.
Antonio also served as the deputy spokesperson of TEAM Unity, the administration's senatorial ticket in the 2007 elections.
Mikey, now a party-list representative, declined to give an interview about the issue.
Airport road in CDO
The third largest pork barrel allocation by a district representative to another province is a road project worth P12 million for a road rehabilitation in Misamis Oriental for the CDO-Bukidnon Road, (Carmen Airport Road).
This was allocated in 2003 by then-Quezon fourth district Rep. Georgilu Yumul-Hermida. Quezon is located in Region 4A in Luzon, while Misamis Oriental is Region 10 in Mindanao.
DPWH-Region 10 confirmed the repair and rehabilitation: road concreting started on November 25, 2004 and was finished on February 25, 2005.
This is not the only time Yumul-Hermida allotted her pork barrel outside of Quezon. She represented Quezon’s fourth district from 2001 to 2004.
GMA News Research found out that at least P33.8 million of her pork barrel for the years 2003 and 2004 was allocated to three different provinces: Misamis Oriental, Davao del Sur and Eastern Samar, the province of her spouse.
“After kong grumaduate [ng college], nagkaroon ako ng pagkakataon na magtrabaho doon sa airport. Tapos nakita ko rin nga, lalo sa mga local airports, na ang kadalasang dinaraing nila yung kakulangan ng pasilidad, lalo na yung mga dadaanan. So parang naging concern ko na rin [After I graduated in college, I had the chance to work in the airport. Then I saw, specially in local airports, the lack of facilities, particularly roads. So it became my concern as well,]” Yumul-Hermida says in a phone interview with GMA News.
She worked as a stewardess before she was elected into public office.
Yumul-Hermida explains: “Dahil naisip ko naman na ibinigay ko na sa district ko yung kailangan kong ibigay at naglaan din ako ng pondo bago magtapos ang aking panunungkulan sa mga kaibigan ko na nasa ibang lalawigan, at ganun din sa probinsya ng aking kabiyak [I believe I had already provided my district what it needed. I also
allotted funds to my friends in other places, and also to the province of my spouse].”
UP NCPAG Professor Alvic Padilla says constituents themselves should be aware of the projects funded by their congressmen’s pork barrel.
“Kung baga, kung ako ang magdeesisyon kung paano ko gagamitin sa distrito namin yang pork barrel na binigay sa congressman ko, pareho bang proyekto ang pipiliin ko sa pinili ni congressman? Pareho bang area ang ipa- prioritize ko sa pinili ni congressman? [If one constituent were given the discretion over the allocation of pork barrel funds, would his choice match that of his congressman?] ” Professor Padilla notes.
“Kung ang sagot mo sa mga tanong na yun ay ‘hindi’, naku, eh baka may problema sa pagiging representante ng representative mo sa Kongreso[If the answer is “no,” there is a problem with how your representative represents you in Congress],” he says. — with GMA News Special Assignments Team/RSJ, GMA News
Tags: porkbarrel, houseofrepresentatives
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