Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 22) — Several lawmakers said that realigning unfunded 2020 projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) under its 2021 proposed budget violates the law.
The congressmen raised their concern on the department’s proposed budget that contained half of the unreleased funds in 2020 worth ₱135 billion during the House hearing on the proposed DPWH 2021 budget.
DPWH Undersecretary Eduardo Ramos said the basis for this is the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act (Bayanihan 1) that gave President Rodrigo Duterte the powers to realign the national budget to COVID-19 response.
However, Northern Samar Rep. Paul Daza pointed out that this is not valid since the law has expired in June, while the 2021 proposed budget was submitted sometime in August or September.
Moreover, Daza mentioned that under Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2), “infrastructure, having the highest multiplier effect, can only be discontinued when all other funds, including unobligated allotments and unreleased appropriations, have been exhausted.”
Projects that can only be discontinued so their funds may be used for COVID-19 response should not “support the objectives of economic stimulus and recovery,” Daza said.
The government said early this year that the administration’s flagship infrastructure program Build, Build, Build has a vital role toward the recovery of the country from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this was also affected by the implementation of quarantine restrictions that led to the temporary pause in operations.
On the other hand, Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said this also violates the Constitution. He cited Section 25, Article 7, which states that “no law shall be passed authorizing any transfer of appropriations.”
Leyte Rep. Vicente Veloso also said the Bayanihan law is a “plain statute,” and it cannot overrule the Constitution of the Philippines.
Given this, Daza said it would be better to provide funding for the 2020 projects this year that will also help stimulate the recovery of the country’s economy from the adverse effects of the global crisis.
He also suggested for the DPWH to substitute these projects with new ones in 2021 that will further boost recovery and employment next year.
The department’s proposed 2021 budget is at ₱667.3 billion, or 34 percent higher than its 2020 budget. It is second among the departments which received the bulk of the ₱4.506 trillion national budget for next year.
Of the total amount, ₱643.17 billion is allocated for both infrastructure and non-infrastructure projects, up 15 percent from 2020.
