By Sammy F. Martin
MANILA, Nov. 25 (PNA) — Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte Jr. on Tuesday vowed to sustain the House of Representatives’ version of the 2015 P2.6006-trillion General Appropriations Bill (GAB) being constitutional and pork-free.
Belmonte denied the accusations of Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago that the national budget for next year was loaded with pork barrel and that the new definition of savings was unconstitutional.
“We will maintain what we approved. It is constitutional and common sense,” said Belmonte when asked if the House of Representatives will maintain its version during the bicameral conference committee.
“That’s her opinion. There is no pork in our budget,” Belmonte insists.
Santiago urged her colleagues in a privilege speech to retain the old definition of savings and require the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to submit a report on compliance with reportorial requirements on lump sums.
Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab, who chairs the Housecommittee on Appropriations and Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone defended the 2015 national budget.
“With all due respect to Senator Miriam, the clause at any time for justifiable reasons is not included or part of the House version’s definition of savings. We ensured that the definition we crafted is one which complies and in full accordance with our Constitution, existing laws, rules and recent SC jurisprudence on the matter,” Ungab explained.
Evardone, a vice chairman of the House committee on appropriations, also said there was nothing illegal in the definition of savings.
“It’s only the SC which has the sole authority to declare any issue unconstitutional. I think it is within the constitutional power of the purse of Congress to define savings,” said Evardone.
Santiago hit the congressmen’s system of submitting the list of their priority projects for their districts before the House’s approval of the national budget.
The lady senator also scored the P37.3 billion lump sum funds appropriated to the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Commission on Higher Education. (PNA)