Sotto pushes re-enacted budget
Credit to Author: BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO| Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2019 17:08:54 +0000
SENATE President Vicente Sotto 3rd on Wednesday moved for the re-enactment of the P3.767-trillion 2018 national budget amid allegations that the proposed P3.757-trillion 2019 General Appropriations Bill (GAB) was tainted with fund “insertions.”
Senators Panfilo Lacson, Aquilino Pimentel and Juan Edgardo Angara backed Sotto’s proposal to use the 2018 national budget as operational funding of the government in 2019.
However, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon and Sen. Francis Pangilinan opposed the move.
“Considering the numerous allegations being leveled at the 2019 budget both from the HoR (House of Representatives) and the Senate, I will propose to Sen. Loren (Legarda), as chair of the finance committee, to withdraw the Senate GAB version and go for a reenacted budget,” Sotto said.
“I hope that will erase all doubts and allegations of pork and other so-called insertions in the budget. I’m sick and tired of the allegations,” the Senate chief said in a text message.
Sotto said the budget for the 2019 elections was in the 2018 budget.
Recto, however, said a re-enacted budget “will not be good for job creation and will stall the growth of the economy.”
“‘Build Build Build will suffer’,” he added.
Pangilinan said reenacted budget would be tantamount to giving the Executive Department “a blank check in an election year.”
However, the House of Representatives insisted that a new budget bill should be passed.
“Our position remains unchanged. We want a new budget. We are against a reenacted one,” Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr., head of the House contingent to the Bicameral Conference Committee on the 2019 Budget, said.
With a reports from Glee Jalea
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