After weeks of discussions and debates, the much awaited House REesolution 298 was filed by the Makabayan Coalition representatives in the Lower House BAYAN MUNA Representative Neri Colmenares, GABRIELA Women’s Party Representative Luz Ilagan, ACT Teachers Party-List Representative Antonio Tinio, GABRIELA Women’s Party Representative Emmi de Jesus, ANAKPAWIS Representative Fernando Hicap, KABATAAN Representative Terry Ridon, and BAYAN MUNA Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate
Republic
of the Philippines
HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES
Batasan
Hills, Quezon City
SIXTEENTH
CONGRESS
First
Regular Session
House
Resolution No. 298
Introduced
by
BAYAN MUNA Representative Neri Colmenares,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Representative Luz Ilagan,
ACT Teachers Party-List Representative Antonio Tinio,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Representative Emmi de Jesus,
ANAKPAWIS Representative Fernando Hicap,
KABATAAN Representative Terry Ridon,
and BAYAN MUNA Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate
RESOLUTION
STRONGLY
URGING THE CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT TO RESPOND TO THE PUBLIC CLAMOR FOR THE
ABOLITION OF THE PORK BARREL SYSTEM, ITEMIZE LUMP SUM FUNDS AND ALLOCATE THESE TO
BASIC SOCIAL SERVICES, SUBSTANTIAL SALARY INCREASES FOR GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES,
AND JOB CREATION AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES STATED HEREIN
WHEREAS, the
nation is outraged with the expose of the massive pork barrel scandal in which at
least P10 Billion of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of five
senators and 24 congressmen were channelled to Janet Lim-Napoles’s bogus
non-government organizations (NGOs) for ghost projects and the host of abuses
of PDAF as revealed by the Commission on Audit (COA) in its Special Audit
Report 2007-2009;
WHEREAS, PDAF,
a Special Purpose Fund (SPF) subject to the discretion of the President with
regard to its release to individual legislators and that of the legislators’
with regard to its proceeds, is but a small portion of pork barrel and lump sum
discretionary funds in the national budget;
WHEREAS, according to University of the Philippines Professor
Leonor Briones, former head of the national treasury, the President has far
bigger pork barrel and lump sum discretionary funds including but not limited
to the P310 Billion Special Purpose Funds; P132 Billion “Malampaya funds”; P2.6
Billion remittances by Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to
the President’s Social Fund; and the P12 Billion Motor Vehicle Users’ Charge
fund;
WHEREAS, aside from PDAF, presidential pork barrel or lump sum
funds have also been used for political patronage, bribery, and corruption such
as the P20 Billion Malampaya fund scam being investigated by the COA, the
questionable transactions involving hundreds of millions of PAGCOR funds under
both Genuino and Naguiat administrations, and the illegal use of hundreds of millions
of pesos of intelligence funds stripped from Philippine Charity Sweepstakes
Office (PCSO);
WHEREAS, under the Aquino's presidency, some P280
Billion of unobligated and unreleased funds and over-all savings of various
departments and agencies have been centralized and realigned subject to the
President's discretion, thus, making them another form of pork barrel/lump sum
in the hands of the President; DBM Circular 541 issued by Sec. Florencio Abad
mandates the impoundment by the President of the unobligated funds of
departments and government agencies in the middle of the year;
WHEREAS, pork
barrel system is a system of allocating and disbursing public funds to
perpetuate political patronage and is a massive source of corruption;
WHEREAS, the
President is the biggest holder and dispenser of pork barrel acting as patron
of favored government officials, politicians, influential persons, and other
groups and is using the pork barrel system to control Congress and buy votes;
the President’s hoard of pork and lump sum funds dwarfs that of the
Vice-President, senators and congressmen, and other elected and appointed
officials of various government agencies and units;
WHEREAS,
President Aquino, instead of discarding the pork barrel and lump sum
appropriations, has substantially increased it in the national budget; aside
from the Special Purpose Funds, he increased five-fold Arroyo’s conditional
cash transfer program to P62.6 Billion and introduced new forms such as the P20
B bottom-up budgeting projects, P7 B Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA)
program, and at least P4.8 Billion Public-Private Partnership funds;
WHEREAS,
widespread protests have erupted, like in the Million People March on 26 August
2013 when hundreds of thousands of people showed up in Luneta and in other
places nationwide and abroad to express their collective wrath against the
massive plunder of public funds through the pork barrel system in the midst of
unmitigated poverty, increased unemployment, and high costs of and extreme
shortages in education, health, housing, and other basic social services;
WHEREAS, the
people’s intensifying clamor is to abolish the pork barrel system, not just
PDAF but all forms of pork barrel of the Congress, the President, and the
various government agencies and rechannel the said funds to basic social
services, substantial salary and wage hikes, and job creation;
WHEREAS, studies
of progressive party-list groups identified at least P927.14 Billion of pork
barrel and lump sum appropriations that must be (1) rechanneled to basic social
services, government employees salary hikes, and job creation and (2) itemized
for purposes of instituting transparency and accountability; to wit:
SOURCES
OF PORK BARREL FUNDS
|
Amount in Billion Pesos
|
SUB TOTAL
|
PROPOSED
ACTION
|
|
|
I.
PDAF
|
|
25.24
|
Abolish; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
II. President/Executive/Other Pork
Barrel
|
|
921.30
|
|
|
|
1
|
Off-budget accounts*
|
|
147.87
|
Amend relevant laws
|
|
|
Malampaya funds
|
132.00
|
|
Transfer to GF subject to
congressional appropriations; fund renewable energy and BSS/GE
|
|
|
President's Social Fund
|
2.40
|
|
Transfer to GF; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Motor Vehicle Users’ Charge
|
12.00
|
|
Transfer to GF; rechannel to BSS/GE
and subsidy to farmers
|
|
|
CHED—Higher Education Development
Fund
|
1.47
|
|
Transfer to SUCs' budget; itemize
|
|
2
|
Special Purpose Funds
|
|
173.50
|
|
|
|
Budgetary Support to GOCCs
|
46.69
|
|
Itemize
|
|
|
Allocation to LGUs
|
19.70
|
|
Transfer to RB; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Support to Infrastructure
|
14.00
|
|
Transfer to RB; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Feasibility Studies Fund
|
0.40
|
|
Transfer to RB; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
School Building Program
|
1.00
|
|
Transfer to DepEd; itemize
|
|
|
E-Government Fund
|
2.50
|
|
Transfer to RB (DOST); itemize
|
|
|
Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund
|
80.71
|
|
Transfer to RB; return to departments
|
|
|
Calamity Fund
|
7.50
|
|
Transfer to RB (NDRRMC); review
amount
|
|
|
Contingent Fund
|
1.00
|
|
Transfer to RB; rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
3
|
Regular budget (Pork/Lump sum of
various agencies)
|
|
235.28
|
|
|
|
DSWD – Conditional Cash Transfer
|
62.60
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
PAMANA (various agencies)
|
7.22
|
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
|
|
Intelligence funds (various agencies)
|
0.80
|
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
|
|
DOH—Additional PhilHealth budget
|
22.68
|
|
Rechannel to DOH hospitals MOOE
|
|
|
DPWH—Right of Way
|
2.51
|
|
Itemize/rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
OVP—Implementation of priority
programs and projects
|
0.20
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
SOURCES
OF PORK BARREL FUNDS
|
Amount in Billion Pesos
|
SUB TOTAL
|
PROPOSED
ACTION
|
|
|
II. President/Executive/Other Pork
Barrel
|
|
|
||
|
|
DPWH—PPP Strategic Support Fund
|
4.98
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
DPWH—Feasibility Study/Project
Development
|
3.01
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
NEDA—PPP Capacity Building Project
|
5.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
DOTC—PPP Strategic Support Fund
|
5.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
DA—Farm to Market Roads
|
12.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
DA — National Irrigation Projects
a.
Jalaur(Iloilo)
b.
Balog-Balog (Tarlac)
c.
Casecnan(Nueva Ecija)
|
1.00
1.10
1.30
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
DA— Agriculture Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF)
|
1.00
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
DA — National Program for Rice, Corn, High Value Crops and Livestock
(AgriPinoy Programs)
|
11.70
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
DAR — Tulay ng Pangulo para sa Kaunlarang Pang-Agraryo
|
2.10
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
DAR — Support Services and foreign-assisted projects for the PBD Component
of CARP
|
6.30
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
|
DepEd—Various items for school
building
|
44.63
|
|
Itemize
|
|
|
Various Infrastructure Including
Local Projects
|
11.30
|
|
Itemize
|
|
|
DSWD—Sustainable Livelihood
|
2.50
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
DOH—Health Facilities Enhancement
Program
|
13.30
|
|
Itemize
|
|
|
CHED lump sum for SUCs
|
5.00
|
|
Return to SUCs
|
|
PAMANA
|
7.22
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
Intelligence Funds
|
.83
|
Rechannel to BSS
|
||
|
4
|
Unprogrammed Funds
|
|
83.87
|
|
|
|
Budgetary Support to GOCCs
|
0.36
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Support to Foreign-Assisted Projects
|
16.12
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
General Fund Adjustment
|
1.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Debt Management Program
|
25.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
Risk Management Program
|
30.00
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
People's Survival Fund
|
0.50
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
|
AFP Modernization Fund
|
10.89
|
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE
|
|
5
|
Unused Appropriations
|
280.78
|
||
|
Unreleased Appropriations
|
38.12
|
Return to GF; subject to
Congressional appropriation
|
||
|
SOURCES
OF PORK BARREL FUNDS
|
Amount in Billion Pesos
|
SUB
TOTAL
|
PROPOSED
ACTION
|
|
|
II. President/Executive/Other Pork
Barrel
|
|
|
||
|
Unobligated Allotment
|
178.06
|
Return to GF; subject to Congressional
appropriation
|
||
|
Overall Savings
|
64.60
|
Return to GF; subject to Congressional
appropriation
|
||
|
|
GRAND TOTAL
|
|
946.54
|
|
|
PDAF
|
25.24
|
|||
|
Rechannel to BSS/GE total amount (PDAF
& Presidential/Executive/Other Pork Barrel)
|
277.51
|
|||
|
Return to GF; subject to Congress
appropriation
|
427.18
|
|||
|
Itemize total amount
|
123.4
|
|||
|
Return to Department (MPBF)
|
80.71
|
|||
|
Review amount; allocate to NDRRMC and
BSS
|
7.50
|
|||
|
Return to SUCs
|
5.00
|
|||
|
GRAND TOTAL
|
946.54
|
|||
*Legend:
BSS - basic social services; GE - salary hikes for government employees; RB - Regular
Budget; GF – General Funds
WHEREAS, upon
broad consultations with the concerned sectors of society, progressive party-
list representatives have come up with the following proposals to rechannel
pork barrel funds and itemization of lump sum funds to enable the House of
Representatives to truly exercise its power of the purse;
|
I.
PROPOSED RECHANNELING OF PORK BARREL
|
||
|
A. Rechanneling of Congressional PDAF
|
|
Subtotal
|
|
|
|
|
|
1. Health
|
|
11.44
|
|
a. Additional MOOE for free medicines, supplies, and
laboratory and other medical procedures
|
6.60
|
|
|
b. Additional 21,013 nurses (half of the estimated shortage)
|
2.72
|
|
|
c. Additional 3,268 doctors
|
2.12
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. Basic Education
|
|
10.50
|
|
a. Additional MOOE of schools (22% of total MOOE per GAB)
|
6.16
|
|
|
b. Half of the estimated shortage of textbooks &
instructional materials
|
3.50
|
|
|
c. 865,000 chairs and instructional facilities
|
0.84
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. SUCs
|
|
3.30
|
|
Restore budgets of 79 SUCs which will
incur cuts in 2014
|
3.30
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL PDAF
|
|
25.24
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Subtotal
|
|
B. Rechanneling of President and
other pork barrel/lump sums
|
|
|
|
1. Basic Education
|
52.82
|
|
|
a. Produce the other half of the estimated shortage of
textbooks & instructional materials
|
3.50
|
|
|
b. Build 20,000 classrooms (to address the incremental
requirements for SYs 2013-2014 and 2014-2015)
|
16.00
|
|
|
c. Build 153,705 units of water and sanitation facilities
|
10.30
|
|
|
d. Additional MOOE (with B.1. above, to double the proposed
allotment)
|
7.99
|
|
|
e. Additional 10,000 Teacher II, Teacher III, and Master
Teacher items (on top of 33,194 Teacher I items per GAB, minimum amount)
|
3.76
|
|
|
f.
Regularize
5,000 contractual teachers (rough estimate of locally and nationally paid
contractuals)
|
1.11
|
|
|
g. Additional 4,665 non-teaching items (on top of the 1,200
per GAB)
|
0.70
|
|
|
h. Funding for benefits under the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers and other benefits (for
teachers in current inventory, those to be hired in 2014, those to be hired
per this proposal, and others)
|
8.00
|
|
|
i.
Double
the appropriations for “Implementation of the grant of cash allowance,
hardship pay, ERFs, conversion to MT, reclassification of positions and
payment of step increments”
|
2.35
|
|
|
j.
Teacher
aides for education for persons with disabilities (including sign language
interpreters)
|
0.22
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. Health
|
84.97
|
|
|
a. MOOE for free medicines, laboratory, and services (from
the increase in funds for PhilHealth)
|
22.68
|
|
|
b. Regularize 4,379 midwives
|
0.85
|
|
|
c. Additional 80,000 midwives
|
15.60
|
|
|
d. Additional 21, 013 nurses (half of the estimated shortage)
|
5.45
|
|
|
e. Regularization of 22,500 RN Heals nurses
|
6.20
|
|
|
f.
Build
25,026 barangay health stations
|
25.02
|
|
|
g. Funding for benefits under the Magna Carta for Public Health Workers
|
8.00
|
|
|
h. Rehabilitation of Existing One-Stop Women and Children
Crisis Center in Regional Hospitals
|
0.06
|
|
|
i.
Construction
of One-Stop Women and Children Crisis Center in DOH Hospitals
|
0.19
|
|
|
j.
Services
Personnel for WCPUs (1 Physician, 2 Social Workers, 1 Psychologist, 1 Nurse)
– in 32 hospitals
|
0.09
|
|
|
k. Operating Expenses and Diagnostice Service Fees
|
0.83
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. SUCs
|
30.07
|
|
|
a.
Unapproved
portion of SUCs’ budget request
|
25.30
|
|
|
b.
Additional
6,770 teaching items (half of estimated shortage of faculty, AY 2013-2014)
|
1.62
|
|
|
c.
Additional13,540
non-teaching items (based on 1:2 faculty-non-teaching personnel ratio of UP)
|
2.03
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Subtotal
|
|
d.
Regularization
of 4,169 part-time faculty (half of contractual faculty, AY 2012-2013)
|
1.00
|
|
|
e.
Scholarship Program for Agriculture Students
|
0.12
|
|
|
4. Government employees
|
70.00
|
|
|
Salary hike for all GE
|
70.00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
5. Agricultural Sector – Exclusive for Legitimate Farmers &
Fisherfolk organizations in the area
|
44.38
|
|
|
a.
Communal and small scale irrigation Projects
|
10.00
|
|
|
b. Grants to farmers affected by liberalization
(Cordillera, Nueva Ecija, Mindoro Occidental, Cavite, Batangas) and
fisherfolks nationwide
|
5.00
|
|
|
c.
Credit support facilities without interest and collateral to farmers
and fisherfolks
|
10.00
|
|
|
d.
Free non-GMO seeds, seedlings and planting materials to farmers
|
7.40
|
|
|
e.
Organic fertilizer and pesticides subsidy to farmers
|
4.58
|
|
|
f.
Subsidy for petroleum products used in production by farmers and fisherfolks
|
4.42
|
|
|
g.
Farm and fishing tools and implements
|
2.90
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6. Free housing for urban poor
families
|
10.00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7. Financial and legal assistance and
repatriation fund for OFWs
|
10.00
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
8. Social Pension Fund for
Senior Citizens
|
|
22.00
|
|
|
|
|
|
SUB-TOTAL for Rechanneling of
President and other pork barrel/lump sums
|
|
324.24
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL FUNDS TO BE RECHANNELED
|
|
349.48
|
|
II.
INTIAL LIST OF PROPOSED FUNDS FOR ITEMIZATION
|
REMARKS
|
|
|
A.
SPF -
Budgetary Support to GOCCs
|
46.69
|
Itemize
|
|
B.
School
Building Program
|
1.00
|
Transfer to DepEd; itemize
|
|
C.
E-Government
Fund
|
2.50
|
Transfer to RB (DOST); itemize
|
|
D. DA—Farm to Market Roads
|
12.00
|
Itemize
|
|
E.
DepEd—Various
items for school building
|
44.63
|
Itemize
|
|
F.
Various
Infrastructure Including Local Projects
|
11.30
|
Itemize
|
|
G. DOH—Health Facilities Enhancement Program
|
13.30
|
Itemize
|
|
H. DA—Irrigation Fund
|
5.10
|
Itemize
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL FUNDS FOR ITEMIZATION
|
136.52
|
|
|
III.
FUNDS TO BE RETURNED TO SPECIFIC AGENCIES
|
REMARKS
|
|
|
A.
SPF -
Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund
|
80.71
|
Return to department
|
|
B.
SPF -
Calamity Fund
|
7.50
|
Allocate to NDRRMC and BSS
|
|
C.
CHED
lump sum for SUCs
|
5.00
|
Return to SUCs
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL FUNDS FOR RETURN
|
93.21
|
|
|
IV.
FUNDS TO BE RECHANNELED TO GF AND SUBJECT TO CONGRESSIONAL APPROPRIATION
|
REMARKS
|
|
|
A.
Unreleased Appropriations
|
38.12
|
Return to GF
|
|
B.
Unobligated Allotment
|
178.06
|
Return to GF
|
|
C.
Overall
Savings
|
64.60
|
Return to GF
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL FUNDS FOR RETURN
|
280.78
|
|
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Congress abolish the entire pork barrel system by scrapping PDAF and all forms of congressional and
presidential pork barrel and by removing presidential discretion over
Malampaya funds, the remittances from PAGCOR and PCSO,
MVUC funds, and all Special Purpose Funds and other lump sum appropriations and
subjecting the same to Congress scrutiny and line item budgeting;
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that the Congress enact a national budget that will truly
serve the needs of the people, by rechanneling PDAF, Malampaya, PAGCOR, MVUC,
CCT, PAMANA and PPP funds and other presidential pork to basic social services,
substantial hikes in government salaries, subsidies to farmers and job creation
as proposed above;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Congress nullify DBM
Memorandum Circular 541 on the impoundment of unobligated funds and remove from
the President's discretion unreleased and over-all savings and subject the same
to congressional appropriation and approval;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that recommendations, nominations
and any other forms of entitlement for individual legislators and the executive
department shall be prohibited and criminally proscribed;
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that the Congress move to amend relevant laws governing
off-budget accounts as enumerated above by abolishing presidential discretion
over their disbursement and transferring them to the general fund for public
and congressional scrutiny and approval; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that these funds be rechanneled to basic social services, increase
of government salaries, job creation, and renewable energy.
Adopted,
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