Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 9) — Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno was unfazed by threats from House Majority Floor Leader Andaya to file cases against him before the Supreme Court.
“He said he will sue me if I do not adjust the pay by January 15. I said, then sue me. Go to the Supreme Court and sue me. But that is the law. If I implement it the way he wanted it, ako naman ang magkakaroon ng kaso diba [I will have a case]. Because there’s no legal basis for adjusting the pay,” Diokno said.
Andaya on Monday said the DBM had been using “scare tactics” by warning that a delay in the budget approval will delay the release of funds for the salary hike of soldiers, policemen, teachers and civilian employees.
Diokno said it was clear under Executive Order 201 in 2016 that Congress should allocate funds for the fourth tranche of the salary hike under the Salary Standardization Law, before the Department of Budget and Management could release it.
The government is currently under a re-enacted budget after Congress failed to give President Duterte a consolidated copy of the General Appropriations Bill. The House passed the bill in November, but the Senate said they did not have time to go through the lower chamber’s bill before the yearend.
Andaya said funds for the pay hike could be pooled the same way the administration found a way to double salaries of policemen and soldiers in 2018 when they were not part of the budget.
Diokno, however, claimed that was sourced from a lump sum fund called the “miscellaneous personal benefit fund” within the programmed “personal services” in 2018.
The Budget Chief said this fund cannot be tapped for the pay hike this year because it only covers the third tranche scheduled in 2018.
Malacañang on Tuesday already asserted there was no legal basis for releasing the salary increase.
Diokno said further delays in the budget would not benefit lawmakers.
“It will deny them the essential projects that need to be implemented during the election period,” he said.
The Budget chief said the Senate is optimistic they will pass their version of the budget by the end of the month.
Diokno said he hopes that the new budget will be in effect by the second quarter of 2019.
He added they are in talks with a third-party entity to conduct studies for salary increase for government workers from 2020 to 2022.
CNN Philippines’ Senior Correspondent Ina Andolong contributed to this report.
