Duterte calls Congress leaders on budget row

IN a bid to avoid the costly economic consequences of further delays in the passage of the proposed P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019, President Duterte finally decided to intervene in the brewing standoff between the Senate and the House of Representatives.

He called for a meeting with Congress leaders on Tuesday night, and Malacañang said in a briefing the likely purpose of that meeting was to help the two Houses settle their differences on the budget, sparked by allegations of “manipulation” of the final version from the bicameral conference committee even after such was ratified separately by the two chambers.

Asked what could be the talking points of the President during the meeting, Presidential Spokesman Salvador S. Panelo said: “You know the style of the President—he listens. He listens and lets the protagonists settle among themselves—in other words, he will just be a moderator.”

On getting the presidential invitation, Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III said he asked—and Duterte agreed—for permission to bring along Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph G. Recto, Majority Leader Juan Miguel F. Zubiri, Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Loren Legarda, Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson Sr. and Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office (LBRMO) chief Yolanda Doblon.

“Kagabi pinatawagan ako ng Presi- dente. Ang sabi sa akin, pumunta ako. Sabi ko, ano ang pag-uusapan? Budget daw. Sabi ko, puwede ko bang isama ’yung mga kasama ko? Si Loren at si Atty. Doblon? Siyempre si Ping? Oo daw [Last night, the President instructed someone to call me. I was told to go to the Palace. For talks on the budget. I asked, may I bring along Loren and Atty. Doblon? And of course, Senator Ping? They said yes],” Sotto said.

On the suggestion of Legarda, Sotto said he asked Senators Recto and Zubiri to join them. “That is the background, so now, I don’t know who else the President invited on the part of the House.” Asked if he was informed that Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo would also be invited to the Palace meeting, Sotto replied it was the President that extended the invitations, adding: “Sino man ang nandoon, siya nag-imbita.”

Sotto indicated in the same interview that senators are likely to stick to their position of supporting the Senate version of the 2019 budget bill. “Presently, our stand is that we sent the President what we ratified. That is our stand,” Sotto said.

He asserted this was the way to end the stalemate “because that is the only legal way, there is no other legal way.”

“you know the style of the President—he listens. He listens and lets the protagonists settle among themselves—in other words, he will just be a moderator.”

—Panelo

Sotto cited an existing rule that “you cannot touch the budget, or any law, after it was already ratified by both Houses.

“If they are talking about realignments, as what is being talked about, they should have done it before the budget bill was ratified.” He wondered aloud: “Why were they so quick in ratifying the budget bill, then took their time in enrolling the bill?”

Meanwhile, Panelo said whatever the outcome of the meeting is, it will lie not only on the President but will also depend on the two Houses.

“The goal of all branches of government is to unite and have as a goal the welfare of the people,” he said.

As Chief Presidential Legal Counsel, Panelo also refused to give his legal opinion on the matter since it was not raised before him.

The Senate and House lawmakers are bickering over claims that the bicameral conference committee report reconciling the two chambers’ versions was “manipulated” even after it was ratified on February 8.

“You know, as a lawyer, I always say that there are as many opinions as there are lawyers—it’s a grey area. It’s a grey area, it’s... the Supreme Court will have to decide on that. But they don’t have to raise that as an issue, they can just agree with each other,” he said.

On Monday night, Duterte signaled that he would rather pay the economic price of extending the reenacted 2018 budget than sign a budget law that will be subject to legal challenge.

He lamented the possible decline in the country’s GDP growth if the 2019 budget would be further delayed, and acknowledged all sectors will be hurt.

“I will not sign anything that would be an illegal document. Magkaroon tayo ng slide sa GDP niyan [We’re going to see a slide in the GDP] if we are going to reenact the budget. Everybody will suffer, including the law enforcement,” he said in a speech at the awarding ceremony for the Outstanding Women in Law Enforcement and National Security of the Philippines at Malacañang.

Take the President’s hint–Lacson

SEN. Lacson said on Tuesday that “if the House of Representatives’ leadership is indeed supportive of the administration’s legislative agenda, it should take a hint from President Rodrigo Duterte in not signing an illegal budget.”

Lacson added the Chief Executive was “correct in not signing anything that would be an illegal document.

“He [the President] is correct. What I can’t understand is why the House leadership cannot take the hint from President Duterte himself.”

Lacson noted that besides the manipulation, the House leadership slashed a whopping P72.319 billion from the Department of Public Works and Highways’ Major Final Output (MFO) 1 and 2 totaling P216 billion, an amount he said was realigned to the pet projects or pork barrel of House members.

“Speaker Arroyo said she is in full support of the President’s agenda, but look at what they have done,” Lacson said, noting that the MFO 1 and 2 refer to institutional projects, many of which had undergone years of planning. These include the Asset Preservation Program, Network Development Program, Bridge Program, Flood

Management Program, Convergence and Special Support Program, including the “Build, Build, Build” legacy project of the administration.

Economic loss

INITIAL numbers conveyed to senators by the Department of Finance, according to Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, showed a pushback of the budget approval until August could mean losses of P500 million daily to the economy, which, in turn, will shave off at least 1.5 percent from the GDP growth targets.

The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) targets GDP growth at 7 to 8 percent in 2019 until 2022 annually.

Due to Congress’ failure to approve the proposed 2019 budget before year-end last year, the government is operating under a reenacted budget at least for the first quarter of this year.

No new projects can start until the 2019 General Appropriations Act is approved.

This is also the first time that the government is operating on a reenacted budget under the Duterte administration.