By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter
PHILIPPINE President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Monday ratified the P6.326-trillion national expenditure plan for 2025 but rejected over P194 billion worth of specific allocations that he claimed were misaligned with his administration’s focuses.
These entail fund allocations for particular initiatives of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and unallocated funds that surged fourfold, Mr. Marcos remarked during the budget signing event at the presidential palace.
“Recognizing that our resources are limited and that the needs of our populace are numerous, we must carefully select the details of the budget, thereby ensuring that even lofty ambitions and substantial plans must be moderated,” the president articulated.
“We need to practice utmost caution; otherwise, we risk amplifying our deficit and debt and hindering our developmental objectives for our nation.”
The P6.326-trillion national budget is 0.4% lower than the P6.352-trillion spending proposal that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) presented to Congress in August. This represents 22% of the anticipated gross domestic product (GDP) for 2025.
Mr. Marcos was initially slated to endorse the budget on Dec. 20 but postponed it to allow for a more “thorough” evaluation after concerns were raised regarding changes made by the bicameral conference committee.
The provisions that have been rejected by Mr. Marcos encompassed P26.065 billion for projects under the DPWH and initiatives worth P168.24 billion classified as “unallocated appropriations.”
Public Works Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan stated that the vetoed initiatives were “not prepared for execution.” “It will take us some time to ensure that these will be implemented promptly,” he commented in a mix of English and Filipino.
Mr. Marcos also pointed out that the unallocated appropriations in the Congress-approved budget bill rose by 300%.
In a briefing following the budget signing, Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman indicated that unallocated funds now represent 4.7% of the General Appropriations Act of 2025, “aligned” with the benchmark suggesting standby funds should only be 5% of the total budget.
She mentioned that the education sector will still receive the largest allocation of P1.053 trillion, amidst inquiries regarding the legality of significant budget reductions imposed on the Department of Education (DepEd).
The education sector encompasses DepEd, state universities and colleges (SUCs), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
Ms. Pangandaman stated that the DPWH will now have a P1.007-trillion budget for 2025, reduced from the P1.034-trillion funding authorized by Congress.
Besides the vetoed items, Mr. Marcos mentioned there will be “conditional implementation” on specific entries to ensure “the people’s resources are utilized per their authorized and stated intentions.”
This pertains to the Ayuda sa Kapos Ang Kita Program (AKAP), which was initially executed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) but will now be jointly implemented with the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).
The execution of AKAP, which grants one-time cash assistance of up to P5,000 for workers “will be strategic, aiming for the long-term enhancement of the lives of eligible beneficiaries, while ensuring against misuse and duplication,” Mr. Marcos commented.
Executive Secretary Lucas P. Bersamin informed reporters that AKAP will have stringent regulations, but did not dismiss the possibility of local politicians seeking financial support for their constituents.
“Don’t be gullible. Don’t be gullible,” he remarked. “Always, in our existence here in the Philippines, someone must take the initiative.”
He added that the National Government does not have complete insight into local circumstances. “It should originate from lower levels.”
Public finance analyst Zyza Nadine M. Suzara asserted that the direct veto on P168 billion worth of entries under unallocated appropriations “does not significantly alter the composition of the 2025 national budget,” suggesting that “pork remains substantial in the DPWH budget.”
“Initially, projects under unallocated appropriations cannot be released until specific conditions are met,” she mentioned in an X message. “The President and economic managers merely acquiesced to the decisions made by the bicam.”
EDUCATION
Meanwhile, Ms. Pangandaman reiterated that unallocated appropriations can be utilized for DepEd’s computerization initiative.
“Provided that we have additional revenues from the DoF (Department of Finance), we can indeed enhance or increase the budget for DepEd, particularly for its computerization initiative,” she stated.
Members of the bicam had decreased DepEd’s budget by P12 billion, which included P10 billion for its computerization initiative.
Enrico P. Villanueva, an educator in money and banking at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, noted that bicam members inflated the DPWH budget by P288 billion, but the President reduced it “only by P26.1 billion, which is not even 10% of the Congress-mandated increase.”
“For numerous Filipinos, this Congress-initiated increase is perceived as pork barrel, since it did not undergo the consultative budgeting process associated with formulating the National Expenditure Program,” he stated in an X message. “People also regard infrastructure projects as a source of corruption and a potential funding avenue for the 2025 elections.”
“If the President aimed to address the populace’s concerns, he should have vetoed the DPWH budget increase substantially, if not entirely.”
Ibon Foundation Executive Director Jose Enrique “Sonny” A. Africa suggested that the President’s last-minute attempt to veto a few items was intended to evade “a clear Constitutional challenge where the total education sector budget is less than even just the DPWH’s.”
“The minor P26.1-billion cut in the DPWH budget was merely sufficient to enable the claim that the education sector budget, encompassing DepEd, SUCs, CHED, and TESDA combined, is greater than DPWH’s P1.007 trillion,” he stated in a Facebook Messenger chat.
Mr. Africa further remarked that the P1.055-trillion allocation for the education sector falls short of the P1.13-trillion budget allocated for infrastructure, which includes the P1.007 trillion for DPWH’s initiatives and P123.7 billion for the Department of Transportation’s projects.
A reenacted budget should have been utilized for the first quarter of the year, he stated, while constructing “a socially coherent, people-focused 2025 budget deliberated transparently.”
However, Mr. Marcos mentioned in his address that a reenacted budget would “delay essential programs and jeopardize objectives for economic growth.”
The Marcos administration may have evaded operating under a reenacted budget, but it overlooked health and other forms of social support “that can enhancethe role of labor in overall efficiency,” Leonardo A. Lanzona, an economics educator at the Ateneo de Manila University, shared via Messenger chat.
PHILHEALTH
Another expert remarked that the President neglected to tackle issues regarding the withdrawal of state support for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), the entity tasked with the execution of universal healthcare.
“It’s disheartening, it’s sorrowful, and quite unheroic on Rizal’s commemoration day,” said health advocate and former Health department consultant Anthony C. Leachon, expressing his disappointment with the President’s inaction on the budget cuts to PhilHealth.
In his address, Mr. Marcos pledged to enhance PhilHealth members’ benefits, a gesture that Mr. Leachon characterized as mere “empty promises.”
“How can you enhance the benefits without funding? You cannot improve the benefits by withholding the P74-billion subsidy,” he articulated in a telephone interview.
Previously, Mr. Marcos defended the bicameral legislature’s decision to cut funding for PhilHealth, pointing to its reserve funds.
According to Mr. Leachon, PhilHealth’s reserve funds, which are not surplus and are intended to lower member contributions and broaden services for them, will diminish in two to three years.
“You’re not meant to utilize that, as they made a significant error in claiming that the reserve funds are surplus. These are emergency funds intended to expand the benefit package, lower the premium, and decrease out-of-pocket expenses,” he stated.
In addition, the President has placed 11 other proposals under conditional implementation, including the DSWD’s “PAyapa at MAsaganang PamayaNAn Program,” the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, and assistance for programs backed by foreign aid.
The utilization of surplus funds from the annual tariff revenue from rice imports will also be regulated by the departments of Finance and Agriculture.
Four items in the 2025 budget were similarly placed under general scrutiny to “clarify adjustments made by Congress.” These items comprise additional compensation payments for the organizational framework of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as the electoral tribunals of the two chambers and the Commission on Appointments.
