The Department of Budget and Management on Monday submitted to the House of Representatives the proposed P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022.
This developed as House leaders led Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez welcomed the inclusion of health in the proposed national government budget for next year.
Romualdez said: “I fully support the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to mainstream health in every aspect of our budget priorities as contained in the 2022 National Expenditure Program which was submitted to Congress today. Given this track, I share the optimism that the P5.024-trillion proposed budget for 2022 will pave the way to regain the health and strength of our people as well as the vigor of our economy.”
In the Senate, Sen. Panfilo M. Lacson resigned as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, and Chairman of the panel’s Subcommittee C,to focus on scrutinizing the P5.024-trillion budget for 2022.
Lacson said he wanted to address the advent of red flags raised by the Commission on Audit in its audit reports of several agencies.
He said the COA’s red flags indicate the “blatant inefficiency, unconscionable incompetence and worse, probable misuse and abuse of public funds in virtually the entire government.”
“I trust that it is to the greatest interest of our people to once and for all, ferret out the truth behind these reports, put value to the oft-ignored COA mandate, and ensure that there will be no ‘sacred cows’ in making accountable those who have blundered the effective and proper use of public monies,” he said in his letter to Senate President Vicente Sotto III.
In explaining his support for the proposed 2022 national government, Romualdez said: “It is a wise policy to craft an expenditure program that puts premium on the health sector, which is allocated a proposed budget of P252.4 billion next year.”
“What I find reassuring is the allocation of P30 billion for the purchase of drugs, medicines, vaccines, and medical and dental supplies for distribution to government health care facilities. Eighty percent of this total amount was earmarked for distribution to disease-stricken provinces.”
In addition to the P30 billion allocation for medicines and related items like vaccines, next year’s proposed budget also allocated P20.8 billion for the recruitment of more health workers and contact tracers,” he said.
“To boost manpower for our people’s health requirement, P17 billion was allocated to hire 26,035 health professionals for deployment to public and private hospitals in underserved areas where they are most needed. Another P3.8 billion will fund the emergency hiring of 6,810 COVID-19 Human Resources for Health,” Romualdez added.
In addition, Romualdez expressed support for the allocation of start-up funds for the soon-to-be-created Virology Science and Technology Institute.
He said, “aside from taking care of our people’s health requirements, the 2022 NEP makes sure that P475.9 billion are allocated for social protection and P803 billion for the education sector to support job and income security.”
“This, I believe, will help our common efforts to sustain our COVID-19 response efforts while supporting the gradual transition to full recovery. Now that Congress has formally received the 2022 NEP, it is now the duty of your Representatives to review the proposed budget to ensure that the people’s taxes will be spent fairly and equitably among regions,” said Romualdez.
For his.part, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco said the House aims for a timely and decisive passage of the 2022 General Appropriations Act.
“As the coronavirus pandemic drags on and with no end in sight, it is incumbent upon Congress to swiftly pass a national budget that will not only serve as an instrument for development but also as a powerful tool to decisively defeat COVID-19 and rebuild people’s lives and livelihoods,” Velasco added.
Based on the Palace-submitted budget, the education sector, which is composed of the Department of Education, State Universities and Colleges, and the Commission on Higher Education, got the biggest chunk of the budget, with a total P773.6 billion.
The Department of Public Works and Highways comes next with P686.1 billion; followed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government with P250.4 billion.
The Department of Health and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation ranks fourth with P242.0 billion.
Other agencies in the top 10 or the so-called priority list include the Department of National Defense (P222 billion), Department of Social Welfare and Development (P191.4 billion), Department of Transportation (P151.3 billion), the Department of Agriculture and National Irrigation Administration (P103.5 billion), the Judiciary with (P45.0 billion), and the Department of Labor and Employment (P44.9 billion)
The DBM said the proposed national budget for 2022 is higher by 11.5 percent than the P4.5-trillion fiscal program for 2021. It is also equivalent to 22.8 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
