Govt makes early call for 2012 PPP infra projects

Despite having no public-private partnership (PPP) project yet in place, the Aquino administration is already telling government agencies to pursue PPP projects for 2012. In the budget call for next year, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said the objective of crafting the national budget is to "ensure that available public resources are maximized" for anti-poverty and growth projects and services. "The use of private-public partnerships is encouraged for public investment activities which are attractive to [and] suitable for domestic and foreign investments," according to the budget call. A P200-billion seed fund has been allotted to President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III's PPP initiative. The Aquino administration’s PPP initiative has been criticized for shielding investors from regulatory risks when they collaborate with government in infrastructure projects. Critics claimed the program would bloat the country's debt burden and increase corporate takeovers of government roles at the expense of public interest. The Aquino administration, however, has hailed the PPP program as a way of creating fiscal space so government can spend more on social services such as public health and education. According to framework of the 2012 budget call, the 2012 budget "will reflect the government's strategy of expanding its revenue base and improving tax compliance, and further sharpening its sectoral and geographical expenditure focus." No legislation of new taxes It said that revenue collections will be raised from 15.6 percent of the gross domestic product this year 2011 to 16.3 percent of by 2012. Budget Secretary Florencio "Butch" Abad assured the people that the Aquino administration currently does not see the need to push for legislation of new taxes. Aquino pledged during the campaign no new taxes will be imposed during his term. "There's no mention of that [new taxes] because we have not agreed on anything along those lines," he said in a phone interview with GMANews.TV. Abad said the government intends to increase revenue collection by improving tax collection efforts, part of which is to run after tax evaders. Since the Aquino administration took over, the government has lodged tax evasion or smuggling cases against several personalities and companies, including oil giant Pilipinas Shell which the Bureau of Customs accused of defrauding government of about P24.4 billion in excise and value-added taxes. Government will focus on fighting corruption and promoting transparency, reducing poverty, sustaining inclusive economic growth, building an energized and professional bureaucracy, and encouraging safe communities and sustainable use of resources, according to the 2012 budget framework. The budget call for 2012 was released this month — a few months earlier than usual — so that the proposed 2012 budget may be submitted after President Aquino delivers his State of the Nation Address July 25. — VS, GMANews.TV