Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 18) — Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel said he supports the call for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to veto the ₱450 billion increase in unprogrammed appropriations under the 2024 budget, otherwise a case may be filed before the Supreme Court.
“The possible remedy is for the president to veto the excess so that the budget will come back to the levels as proposed by the president. But if the president does not do this, therefore we have a case, this can be questioned before the Supreme Court,” Pimentel told CNN Philippines’ The Source on Monday.
He said he is already talking to lawyers to possibly question the 2024 allocation before the high court.
Former Senator Ping Lacson first suggested the idea on Sunday after Pimentel revealed the surge in unprogrammed funds under next year’s budget from the proposed ₱281.9 billion to ₱731.4 billion after the bicameral conference.
Pimentel said the increase is unconstitutional, citing Article 6, Section 25 of the 1987 Constitution, which states, “The Congress may not increase the appropriations recommended by the President for the operation of the Government as specified in the budget. The form, content, and manner of preparation of the budget shall be prescribed by law.”
According to the Senate leader, there are two possible scenarios once the issue is taken to the Supreme Court. If it sees that the unprogrammed funds are unconstitutional, this item may be vetoed and the government will be operating with a budget amended by the high court. If the court declares the whole budget unconstitutional, the 2023 national spending may be reenacted, he explained.
Senator Sonny Angara, chairman of the finance committee, earlier told CNN Philippines that while the unprogrammed appropriations were increased, this will still depend on the government’s revenue or tax collections. Standby appropriations can only be implemented if the income will be higher than expected, he noted.
House Speaker Martin Romualdez said in a statement that Marcos is expected to sign the ₱5.76-trillion national budget on Wednesday.
