Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson is now more emboldened to fight pork barrel and other anomalies in the budget, after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stressed there should be no repeat of the mangling of the 2025 budget in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last Monday.
Lacson, an avowed enemy of the pork barrel system, also cited other positive developments from House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman that further fuel his drive to keep the budgeting process transparent and corruption-free.
“I will help because this is something I have been doing for so long. But now I and my staff are more emboldened to go after pork barrel because the President himself said he will not sign a budget bill that does not align with the National Expenditure Program,” he said in Filipino in an interview on DZBB radio Tuesday.
In Filipino: Ping Lacson, Lalong Lumakas ang Loob na Labanan ang ‘Pork’ sa Budget Matapos ang SONA ng Pangulo
In his SONA last Monday, the President said he will not sign a budget bill that does not align with the NEP – even if it means the country will have a reenacted budget for next year.
Aside from the President’s pronouncement, Lacson said Sec. Pangandaman had talked to department secretaries and asked them not to approach lawmakers for additional funding in their 2026 budgets.
Lacson noted that when agency heads ask lawmakers for augmentations in their budgets, this emboldens some lawmakers to make their own insertions in the budget bill.
“That’s where it starts. A lawmaker would be emboldened to insert items in the budget for his or her district,” he said.
On the other hand, Lacson said Romualdez’s pronouncements for an “open bicam,” should help ensure transparency in the budgeting process.
He said this will jibe with his re-filed bill institutionalizing the participation of non-government organizations and civil society groups in the budgeting process.
“What is good is that I heard the Speaker encouraging transparency in the bicameral conference committee, particularly for the budget. It’s the Speaker who said this, and he has great influence in the House. If that is his marching order, I don’t think there will be anyone who will openly defy him,” he said.
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Ping Lacson, Lalong Lumakas ang Loob na Labanan ang ‘Pork’ sa Budget Matapos ang SONA ng Pangulo
Lalong lumakas ang loob ni Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson na labanan ang pork barrel at ibang anomalya sa pambansang budget, matapos sabihin ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. sa kanyang State of the Nation Address (SONA) noong Lunes na hindi na dapat maulit ang pagyurak sa 2025 budget.
Dagdag na nagpapalakas ng loob kay Lacson, na matagal nang kalaban ng pork barrel system, ang mga pahayag kamakailan ni House Speaker Martin Romualdez at Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman.
“Tutulong ako kasi dati kong ginagawa. Lalo ngayon mas lalong lumakas loob ko pati ang aking staff naenganyo sila kasi mismo sa Pangulo nanggaling, pag di aligned sa NEP,” aniya sa panayam sa DZBB nitong Martes.
Sa kanyang SONA, sinabi ng Pangulo na hindi siya pipirma sa panukalang budget na hindi alinsunod sa NEP – kahit na ma-reenact ang budget sa 2026.
Bukod sa pahayag ng Pangulo, sinabi ni Lacson na nakiusap na si Sec. Pangandaman sa mga kalihim na huwag nang lumapit sa mambabatas para sa dagdag na pondo sa budget nila para sa 2026.
Ani Lacson, ang paghingi ng dagdag na pondo sa budget ay nagpapalakas ng loob sa ilang mambabatas para magsingit ng pondo para sa constituent nila.
“Diyan nagsisimula. Lumalakas ang loob, ang sasabihin ng congressman, magsisingit ako para sa distrito ko,” aniya.
Idiniin din ni Lacson na makakatulong ang pahayag ni Romualdez para sa “open bicam,” na magtitiyak ng transparency sa budgeting process.
Sang-ayon ito sa kanyang re-filed na panukala para sa paglahok ng mga non-government organization at civil society group sa budgeting process.
“Ang maganda ngayon, may narinig akong pahayag ni Speaker Romualdez mismo na ine-encourage niyang maging transparent na ang bicam, particular sa budget… Ito ngayon Speaker of the House na ito. And I hope ang kanyang kapanalig napakalakas naman ng kanyang influence sa House. Kung ganoon ang kanyang marching order, wala na sigurong mangahas o kung meron man, malulunod sa panawagan ng Speaker of the House,” aniya.
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