Business groups welcome improved 2026 budget, call for tougher safeguards

Business groups on Tuesday welcomed the improved 2026 government budget which prioritize education and agriculture, but called for stronger safeguards against political patronage

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday signed the 2026 General Appropriations Act into law, drawing praise from a broad coalition for hitting global benchmarks in education and agriculture spending while facing calls for stricter safeguards against political patronage.

The People’s Budget Coalition, an alliance of business groups, civil society and the Catholic church, said the new budget shows marked improvements in transparency over previous years.

Education funding reached 4.36 percent of gross domestic product, surpassing the 4 percent international benchmark, while the P214.39 billion allocated for agriculture is the highest in over a decade.

The group said that while utilization has historically been a bottleneck, better management could resolve long-standing delays in service delivery.

The coalition also highlighted the restoration of funding for PhilHealth and Project NOAH, advocating for these resources to be integrated into a master plan for climate-resilient infrastructure and nature-based flood control.

Despite the gains, the coalition warned that “constitutionally questionable” unprogrammed appropriations remains a risk. The group classified many social welfare and “ayuda” programs as “soft pork” that could be vulnerable to discretionary use by politicians.

Marcos vetoed P92.5 billion in unprogrammed funds following an open letter from the coalition that flagged P633 billion in risky line items.

The President assured the public that politicians would not interfere in the disbursement of aid and that remaining unprogrammed funds would only be released once specific validation requirements and triggers are met.

The coalition, which includes the Makati Business Club and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, is now calling for an executive order to establish rules-based mechanisms for aid distribution.

The group also urged the government to limit confidential and intelligence funds to legitimate security tasks and provide full public access to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System dataset.

Lawmakers said safeguards against patronage are already embedded in the law, but the coalition maintains these measures were untested and that implementation would be the deciding factor in the budget’s success.