Tag: insertions

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Lacson Pushes Ban on Infra Project Insertions in Budget

To prevent a repeat of the massive corruption behind anomalous flood control and other infrastructure projects, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson pushed Sunday to ban lawmakers from making insertions for infrastructure projects in the budget bill.

Lacson stressed that the scale of corruption that has triggered public outrage and fueled protest actions all stem from the insertions made by greedy lawmakers.

“Both houses of Congress must agree not to make insertions for infrastructure projects. Institutional amendments are allowed but other insertions must be removed,” he said in Filipino in an interview on DZBB radio.

“This should apply not just to unprogrammed appropriations. Lawmakers simply must not meddle in infrastructure projects because that is the root of this massive corruption,” he added. “If we analyze the situation, Congress starts the corruption because of numerous insertions involving hundreds of billions of pesos.”

In Filipino: Lacson: Infra Project Insertions sa Budget, Dapat I-Ban

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Ping: Malaking Congressional Insertions, Tapyasan Muna Para Pambakuna

Puwedeng gamitin para ipambili ng kinakailangan na P20 bilyon na karagdagang bakuna ngayong taon ang bilyon-bilyong congressional insertions na minarkahan ng Department of Budget and Management (DBM) na for later release (FLR).

Iminungkahi ito ni Senador Panfilo Lacson matapos na makausap nitong nakaraang Huwebes ang tatlong czar na nangangasiwa ng mga programa laban sa COVID-19.

“I suggested that the P20 billion can be sourced from the insertions made by lawmakers marked ‘FLR’ because the implementing agencies concerned were not consulted on the insertions and thus could not implement them,” pagbubunyag ni Lacson sa panayam sa kanya ng DWIZ nitong Sabado.

Related: Lacson: Cut Humongous Congressional Insertions for P20B Vaccine Needs
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Lacson: Cut Humongous Congressional Insertions for P20B Vaccine Needs

Why not use the humongous congressional insertions tagged by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) as “For Later Release” (FLR) to meet the P20-billion requirement for COVID vaccines for this year?

Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson raised the possibility following a meeting between him and Senate President Vicente Sotto III, and the “three czars” of the government’s COVID response program last Thursday.

“I suggested that the P20 billion can be sourced from the insertions made by lawmakers marked ‘FLR’ because the implementing agencies concerned were not consulted on the insertions and thus could not implement them,” he said in an interview on DWIZ radio Saturday.

Related: Ping: Malaking Congressional Insertions, Tapyasan Muna Para Pambakuna
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Poor Planning, Embedded ROW Costs: Interpellation of the 2021 DPWH Budget

In his interpellation of the DPWH’s proposed budget for 2021, Sen. Lacson questioned several issues including whopping appropriations for several districts, double appropriations, overlapping projects, modifications involving poor planning, and right-of-way costs embedded in several infrastructure projects on top of the P11.45-billion appropriations for ROWs. He also reiterated his call to set aside at least for 2021 non-priority projects such as multi-purpose buildings (MPBs), in favor of helping LGUs hit by recent typhoons.

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On the Delay in the Passage of the 2019 Budget

If you notice, the budget bill has not been transmitted to Malacañang in spite of the bicam report being ratified by both houses of Congress more than two weeks ago.

I have it on good information that the House leadership is still waiting for several congressmen to finalize the submission of their individual projects. This is not to mention that insertions and realignments were made even after the bicameral report ratification.

While technically speaking, it may not constitute post-legislation enactment since the President has not yet signed the budget measure, we can see clear abuse of discretion especially if done without the concurrence of the Senate; it is also an utter disregard of the Supreme Court’s 2013 landmark ruling.

This latest caper that the House leadership is trying to pull off may also constitute violation of the 1987 Constitution. I’ve talked to some congressmen who expressed anxiety that the pork barrel allocations of at least 60 congressmen were slashed post-bicam ratification.

Whatever it is, these are things that they do for greed. It’s a shame and revolting, to say the least.

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