House approves on 2nd reading P1.816-T budget for 2012

The proposed P1.816-trillion budget for 2012 hurdled second reading Friday night at the House of Representatives despite legal questions raised by members of the minority. The congressmen left untouched the controversial provisions on the additional P16 billion for the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program and the P23.4 billion special purpose fund for unfilled government positions untouched. The House approved the proposed budget at exactly 11:29 p.m. Friday, after over a month of committee deliberations and plenary debates that were sometimes hampered by lack of quorum. House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. thanked his colleagues for passing the proposed budget for 2012, formally known as House Bill (HB) 5023, “in record time." “We conclude our work confident that the budget we will submit to the Senate is not only realistic, but more importantly, serves our objectives," he said in a speech after the bill’s passage on second reading. The House also tasked a committee to accept proposals for amendments to HB 5023 before it is put to vote for third and final reading. Opposition Bayan Muna Rep. Teodoro Casiño, in a speech delivered before the voting on the budget criticized the House leadership for “rushing" the budget process, which he described as “undemocratic, untransparent and undermines the Congress’ power of the purse." “Ang budget deliberations, sa halip na maging proseso sa pagpapahusay ng budget, ay nauwi sa proseso ng tawaran at hingian… We have once again surrendered the power of the purse to the executive," he said. The sectoral congressman also said that the proposed 2012 budget “does not address the fundamental problems of chronic poverty and underdevelopment." During the debates, progressive party-list representatives and opposition congressmen questioned the Aquino administration’s P39-billion allocation to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) CCT program. The proposed CCT allocation is 89 percent higher than its P23 billion budget this year. Those who opposed the CCT budget increase proposed instead that a portion of the amount be realigned to state colleges and universities and public hospitals, whose budgets were slashed last year. Legal question Members of the House minority also questioned the constitutionality of the administration’s move to place P23.4 billion in automatic appropriations for 2012 under a special purpose fund that can only be accessed once the office fills up its vacant posts. The opposition lawmakers said these allocations, labeled as the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund or MPBF, violate the fiscal independence of the judiciary and other constitutional agencies. They even threatened to question the proposed budget before the Supreme Court. Despite such bumps in the deliberation process, members of the majority pushed through with the approval of HB 5023. House leaders earlier said they expect the General Appropriations Act of 2012 signed into law by Dec. 15. The lower chamber will now go on a weeklong break after approving the budget on second reading. — ELR/VS, GMA News