Budget process ‘very political’ in nature – analyst

Metro Manila, Philippines – The budget process for a public office has a political context so officials facing Congress should be prepared, an analyst said on Wednesday, Aug. 28.

The House appropriations committee on Tuesday took almost six hours grilling Vice President Sara Duterte for her office’s proposed budget next year, only to end up deferring approval and setting another hearing date - a rare occurence in recent history for the second highest official in the land.

Lawmakers were irked at the vice president’s templated response to their inquiries.

In an interview with NewsWatch Plus, Jean Franco, UP political science professor, said the budget hearing has evolved through the years.

“It’s very political. If you don’t understand that, you don’t understand the budget process at all. Why is it political? Because you are allocating resources that are perennially scarce,” she said.

In 2023, the appropriations committee passed the Office of the Vice President (OVP) budget after 15 minutes. Budget hearings for the OVP and the Office of the President traditionally end fast at the committee level as a matter of courtesy to a coequal branch of government.

“In deciding whether you will approve this budget or not, people will deliberate not just on the technical issue but also from a political standpoint,” said Franco.

What changed?

Although past OVP budget hearings have swiftly cleared the committee stage, Tuesday’s inquiry was the first since the falling out of UniTeam - the alliance of Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the 2022 elections.

Manila 6th District Rep. Benny Abante said the committee system has remained in terms of scrutinizing budget requests.

“She (Duterte) was the one who changed, we did not…I will always be asking about the budget that she has. Let the others, for example, question the confidential funds,” Abante told NewsWatch Plus.

Franco said it was evident that Duterte came into the hearing knowing that she will be facing a hostile chamber.

“She (Duterte) also was not prepared for the fact that some members are really willing to sit it out,” she said.

Franco said the best way to handle these matters is to be “diplomatic”.

“You’re recognizing their authority and so part of attending hearings would be to understand you’re really not in control,” she said.