Duterte OKs P3.757-T budget for 2019

Malacañang has endorsed to Congress the proposed P3.757-trillion national budget for next year.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said President Duterte approved the proposed budget presented by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) during the Cabinet meeting Monday evening.

Under the proposed budget, the major allocations are P1.185 billion for personal services; P562.9 billion for maintenance expenditures; P752.7 billion for capital outlay; P640.6 billion allotment to local government units (LGUs); support to government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), P187.1 billion; tax expenditures at P14.5 billion; and debt servicing, at P14.1 billion.

For 2019, the DBM said the government will implement the annual cash-based appropriations system projected at P3.468 trillion, which will focus on investments in infrastructure development and social services, consistent with the administration’s goal of making the Philippines attain upper middle income status and becoming a globally competitive economy by 2022.

Among the big ticket infrastructure projects under the Build Build Build program for 2019 are the P2.5-billion Metro Manila Flood Management Project Phase 1; P600-million LRT Line 1 North Extension (common station) and the P500 million Bonifacio Global City-Ortigas Center Road Link Project.

The government also eyes the construction of the North-South Railway Project Phase 3 (P58.2-billion); PNR North 2 (P39.9billion); North –South Commuter Railway Project (P19.7-billion); Chico River

Pump Irrigation (P2.2-billion) and the Arterial Road By-Pass Phase 3 (P2.2-billion); New Cebu International Container Port (P1.9-billion); New Bohol (Panglao) International Airport (P754-million); Panay River Basin Integrated Development Project (P500million); Mindanao Railway Project Phase 1 (P2.2-billion) Malitubog-Maridagao Irrigation Phase II (P 1.5-billion); Panguil Bay Bridge (P907-million) and Davao Airport (P 565-million).

Roque said the Cabinet also discussed the creation of the Department of Disaster Resilience, along with the second phase implementation of agrarian reform and the updates on the acquisition of the NovaSAR system.