A briefly reenacted 2025 budget would be preferable to rushing the passage of the 2026 version only to find it unresponsive to the needs of the times – or worse, prone to corruption, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson said Wednesday.
Lacson said this after Executive Secretary Ralph Recto was quoted as saying President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is to sign the P6.793-trillion budget for 2026 in the first week of January, meaning a reenacted budget for a few days.
He also reiterated that the key, even after the budget is finally signed into law, should still be continued vigilance in monitoring, reporting, and even shaming wrongdoing in government.
“This is exactly what I said earlier – better a reenacted budget in January, or even in the first quarter of 2026, than rushing the passage of a national budget that is not responsive to the call of the times, amidst the yet unresolved investigations on the misuse and abuse of the current and previous expenditure programs, particularly involving flood control projects,” said Lacson, a long-time watchdog of the national budget.
In Filipino: Lacson: Panandaliang Reenacted 2025 Budget, Mas Mainam kaysa Minadali at Corruption-Prone na 2026 Budget
Lacson said a briefly reenacted budget was the most prudent option – notwithstanding the pronouncement by Palace press officer Claire Castro against a reenacted budget – considering that the bicameral conference committee could not agree on certain issues.
The contentious issues included increasing the funding for farm-to-market roads as well as “ayuda” programs including the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) and Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS), which he said are open to potential abuse by politicians.
Further compounding the situation was the appeal of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to restore part of its budget, after its oft-repeated pronouncements to slash their own estimates involving overpriced Construction Materials Price Data (CMPD).
With the House panel insisting on these contentious issues, Lacson said the Senate in caucus decided to put in place several general and special provisions to serve as safety nets and safeguards at least in the execution of the 2026 budget measure.
These included absolutely no guarantee letters allowed and any form of ‘epal’ for all ‘ayudas’; MAIFIP should be implemented strictly under the auspices of Universal Health Care program and in pursuit of complying with the UHC law; and a monthly oversight on infra and FMR projects implementation, complete with grid coordinates for easy monitoring by media and the public.
“Certainly, the bicameral committee report is far from perfect insofar as proper utilization of public funds is concerned. Having said that, we cannot be in a perfect and ideal world when we entrust government funds to politicians of different persuasions and attitudes,” he said.
Lacson also said he wants to believe there are still many in both houses of Congress willing to heed the public clamor to stamp out corruption – and continued vigilance should thus be the key.
“I would like to believe that there are still many of us in Congress who are willing to listen to the public clamor of stamping out corruption in government. The key is not letting our guard down in monitoring and reporting, even shaming shenanigans in the public sector and their co-conspirators outside of government,” he said.
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Lacson: Panandaliang Reenacted 2025 Budget, Mas Mainam kaysa Minadali at Corruption-Prone na 2026 Budget
Mas mainam ang magkaroon ng panandaliang reenacted na 2025 budget kaysa madaliin ang pagpasa ng 2026 budget na hindi pala tumutugon sa pangangailangan ng kasalukuyang panahon — o corruption-prone pa, ani Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson nitong Miyerkules.
Iginiit ito ni Lacson matapos sabihin ni Executive Secretary Ralph Recto na pipirmahan ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ang P6.793-trilyong 2026 budget sa unang linggo ng Enero, kung kaya’t magkakaroon ng reenacted na budget sa loob ng ilang araw.
Muli ring idiniin ni Lacson na kahit matapos pirmahan ang budget bilang batas, nananatiling susi ang tuloy-tuloy na pagbabantay sa pagpapatupad nito, pag-uulat, at maging ang pagbubunyag at pagbatikos sa mga katiwalian sa pamahalaan.
“This is exactly what I said earlier – better a reenacted budget in January, or even in the first quarter of 2026, than rushing the passage of a national budget that is not responsive to the call of the times, amidst the yet unresolved investigations on the misuse and abuse of the current and previous expenditure programs, particularly involving flood control projects,” ani Lacson, na matagal nang tagabantay ng kaban ng bayan.
Ayon kay Lacson, ang panandaliang reenacted na budget ang pinakamakatwirang opsyon — sa kabila ng pahayag ng Palace press officer na si Claire Castro laban sa reenacted na budget — dahil hindi nagkasundo ang bicameral conference committee sa ilang isyu sa 2026 budget bill.
Kabilang sa mga kontrobersyal na isyu ay ang panukalang dagdagan ang pondo para sa farm-to-market roads at mga “ayuda” program, kabilang ang Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) at Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS), na aniya’y maaaring bukas sa pang-aabuso ng mga pulitiko.
Nagpalala pa sa sitwasyon ang apela ng Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) na maibalik ang bahagi ng kanilang panukalang budget, sa kabila ng paulit-ulit nilang pahayag na babawasan ang sariling mga pagtataya kaugnay ng overpriced na Construction Materials Price Data (CMPD).
Dahil sa pagpupumilit ng panig ng Kamara sa mga isyung ito, nagpasya ang Senado na maglagay ng ilang general at special provision bilang mga safety net at pananggalang sa pagpapatupad ng 2026 budget measure.
Kabilang sa mga ito ang mahigpit na pagbabawal sa mga guarantee letter at anumang uri ng “epal” sa lahat ng “ayuda”; ang mahigpit na pagpapatupad ng MAIFIP sa ilalim ng Universal Health Care program at alinsunod sa UHC law; at ang buwanang oversight sa pagpapatupad ng mga proyektong pang-imprastraktura at farm-to-market roads, na may kalakip na grid coordinates upang mas madaling masubaybayan ng media at ng publiko.
“Certainly, the bicameral committee report is far from perfect insofar as proper utilization of public funds is concerned. Having said that, we cannot be in a perfect and ideal world when we entrust government funds to politicians of different persuasions and attitudes,” ani Lacson.
Dagdag ni Lacson, nais niyang maniwala na marami pa ring mambabatas sa parehong kapulungan ng Kongreso ang handang pakinggan ang panawagan ng publiko na wakasan ang korapsyon—kaya’t mahalaga ang patuloy na pagbabantay.
“I would like to believe that there are still many of us in Congress who are willing to listen to the public clamor of stamping out corruption in government. The key is not letting our guard down in monitoring and reporting, even shaming shenanigans in the public sector and their co-conspirators outside of government,” aniya.
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Very good work Sir Senator Lacson. How about writing a law to make the Congress submit the enrolled budget to the Presidentv NOT LATER THAN DEC.15! every year. As it is, the President doesn’t have enough time to review the enrolled budget.