By Jelly F. Musico
MANILA, Aug. 5 (PNA) – Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto urged President Benigno S. Aquino III on Wednesday to ask the Cabinet members running in the 2016 elections to stay longer in their post so they can defend their agency’s budget request for next year.
”Change of the guards in the Cabinet while Congress is in the middle of the budget season will result in both poor defense of agency proposals and weak explanations on how the budget was utilized,” Recto said.
Recto, who is also vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, expressed fear that new Cabinet members might not be able to answer the questions from the lawmakers who will scrutinize the proposed PhP 3.002 trillion national budget for 2016.
“And if it’s a new appointee who will be defending a budget request in the billions of pesos, how can he give a satisfying explanation if he has barely warmed his seat?” Recto asked.
To ensure that agency plans in the last six months of his administration are ably defended by his men, “the President should issue a hold-departure order to department heads who want to resign early because they want enough time to prepare for their run,” Recto proposed.
Explaining how crucial “the presence of incumbents” are during budget hearings, Recto said the latter “is made up of two parts. First, you liquidate past disbursements. Then you justify why Congress should replenish your funds or finance your new projects.”
“Both require institutional memory, so it would be better if the one who’s been on top of all of these for quite some time will be the one doing the explaining instead of someone who’s still on training wheels,” he said.
Recto stressed that incumbent Cabinet members should be able to defend their record and accomplishments, if any.
The House and the Senate budget hearings provide the best venues for a Cabinet member to give his final report.
Traditionally, the House and the Senate wrap up committee-level hearings before October.
The last day of filing certificates of candidacy is on Oct. 16, 2015, according to the May 2016 election calendar.
A government official holding an appointive post is deemed resigned the moment he files his candidacy.
Recto believes that a Cabinet member “with political ambition” who stays on his post until the budget hearings are done gains no advantage from his extended stay.
Late last week, President Aquino endorsed Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II as the administration’s bet in the 2016 presidential elections.
Roxas resigned last Monday but the President asked him not to quit yet. (PNA)