Metro Manila, Philippines – Senator Erwin Tulfo said House counterparts insisted on the inclusion of billions of pesos in unprogrammed appropriations in the national budget – an issue now challenged at the Supreme Court.
”Kaya nga nagkaroon ng ‘di ba, ilang araw na hindi nag-meet ang bicam; ilang oras naantala dahil pinag-uusapan, nagkakaroon ng haggle, kasi they’re saying sa Congress na kailangan ito,” Tulfo said during the Kapihan sa Senado media forum on Thursday, Jan. 8.
[Translation: That’s why there were several days when the bicam didn’t meet; there were hours of delays because it was being discussed and bargained over, since Congress was saying that this was necessary.]
“I was telling our chairman na wala nga tayong pondo diyan, Chair, bakit natin papayagan iyan [that we do not have funds for that, Chair, why would we allow that?],” he added, referring to Senate finance committee chairman Win Gatchalian.
NewsWatch Plus has reached out to House appropriations committee chairperson Mika Suansing for comment.
Tulfo, a member of the bicameral conference committee that finalized the ₱6.793-trillion national budget, said he signed the bicam report “with a heavy heart” after seeing the extent of the unprogrammed appropriations.
The bicam adopted the House version, which allotted ₱243 billion in UAs – more than three times higher than the ₱68.77 billion proposed by the Senate. The executive branch initially sought ₱249.9 billion in unprogrammed funds under the National Expenditure Program.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. later vetoed ₱92.5 billion worth of UAs, leaving ₱150.9 billion in the 2026 General Appropriations Act.
Senior Deputy Minority Leader Edgar Erice and Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima filed a petition on Thursday urging the Supreme Court to declare the unprogrammed appropriations in the 2026 budget unconstitutional.
Tulfo said he agrees with the petitioners. He questioned the government’s reliance on excess or new revenues or loans to fund unprogrammed projects despite the Department of Finance’s admission that it continues to face a budget deficit.
He also warned that unprogrammed appropriations are prone to corruption. Reports by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism show that anomalous flood control projects in previous years were funded through such allocations.
Tulfo said he will oppose the inclusion of unprogrammed appropriations during deliberations for the 2027 national budget, except for foreign-assisted projects.
“Let’s do away with the unprogrammed. Let’s stop this,” Tulfo said.
