by RG Cruz, ABS-CBN News
Posted at 10/30/2013 10:28 PM | Updated as of 10/30/2013 10:28 PM
MANILA - Makabayan bloc congressmen lost no time slamming President Aquino’s prime time television address.
In separate statements to media, they criticized the chief executive for holding on to his lump sums despite public criticism.
Bayan Muna Rep.Neri Colmenares said the chief executive may even be violating the law by holding on to one of his lump sums.
“Pres. Aquino has lost touch with reality and his speech completely misses the point. The people are angry with the corruption and patronage politics that goes with pork and the DAP [Disbursement Acceleration Program]. Worse, realigning appropriations arbitrarily is technical malversation at least, and many public officials have gone to prison for spending funds to items other than those appropriated by law, di lang pagnanakaw ang usapin dito.”
Colmenares added, “Ang gusto ng mamamayan ay tanggalin na lahat ng mga ito. The speech was meant to deodorize pork when no amount of PR and sweet talk will change its nature as inherently anomalous. Ganito kalinaw ang isyu at huwag ng palabuin ito ni Pres. Aquino. Sayang, he could have announced the abolition of pork by simply declaring that he has agreed to itemize the billions of lump sums in the 2014 budget. He missed the opportunity to salvage a little of his sagging popularity by maintaining his stubborn and unreasonable defense of pork.”
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said the 2014 budget pending before Congress is now riddled with “pork.”
“Ang 2014 budget ang patunay na puno pa rin ito ng nagsesebong lump sum allocations, especially the Special Purpose Fund- ang presidential pork barrel! Nakawan, pandarambong nga ang issue, mula noon at hanggang ngayon dahil patuloy pa rin ito kahit sa sinasabing tuwid na daan! Magkaugnay ang DAP at PDAF dahil pareho itong pag abuso ng mga nasa kapangyarihan sa pondo ng gobyerno. Ang usapin ng DAP ay ang paggastos ng executive ng pondo ng gobyerno na walang pahintulot ng Kongreso at sa mga projects na hindi nakasaad sa batas - ito ay unconstitutional!"
Zarate also did not buy the justifications raised by the President. “Hindi porket nakaambag daw ito sa GDP [Gross Domestic Product] ay majustify na ang unconstitutional actions ni PNoy. Bumabagsak ang rating ni Pres Aquino dahil sa kagagawan ng kanyang admin, dahil nalaman at nabisto na ng mamamayan ang hypocrisy ng tuwid na daan slogan! “
ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio felt he heard nothing new in the speech.
“President Aquino's message rehashed some statements previously articulated by Malacañang regarding the PDAF scam, the DAP, and the President's Social Fund. His main message, asking everyone to focus on the prosecution of those who stole from PDAF, is gratuitous, at best.”
Tinio also slammed Aquino for “his depiction of Congress as an institution incapable of providing supplemental appropriations in response to emergency situations, thereby justifying Presidential pork, betrays the President's utter lack of respect for a co-equal branch of government and a cavalier attitude to basic Constitutional tenets. Ultimately, Aquino's speech boiled down to an assertion of moral exceptionalism, a pigheaded defense of Presidential pork, and a repudiation of the public clamor for its abolition."
Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said, "The unconstitutional use of funds through the DAP proves that Mr. Aquino's presidency, although seemingly "nonstick as Teflon," is as unclean as the entire PDAF scam."
"In both cases, the President defended both programs, but remained silent on its misuse. Portions of it does not even constitute savings of government, as funds were impounded without the fiscal year having ended.
"The President thus cannot pretend to be of clean hands in his use of the DAP. In fact, he defended the DAP like a soiled teflon pan - nonstick but unclean. "
Anakpawis Rep. Fernando Hicap pointed out it was damage control.
"If it was for damage control or to get back at his political opponents, the president's address will not erase the prevailing public opinion that corruption persisted under his presidency," Hicap said.
"Aquino's recent statements will further incense people's actions to demand the abolition of the entire pork barrel system, including the presidential pork."
In separate statements to media, they criticized the chief executive for holding on to his lump sums despite public criticism.
Bayan Muna Rep.Neri Colmenares said the chief executive may even be violating the law by holding on to one of his lump sums.
“Pres. Aquino has lost touch with reality and his speech completely misses the point. The people are angry with the corruption and patronage politics that goes with pork and the DAP [Disbursement Acceleration Program]. Worse, realigning appropriations arbitrarily is technical malversation at least, and many public officials have gone to prison for spending funds to items other than those appropriated by law, di lang pagnanakaw ang usapin dito.”
Colmenares added, “Ang gusto ng mamamayan ay tanggalin na lahat ng mga ito. The speech was meant to deodorize pork when no amount of PR and sweet talk will change its nature as inherently anomalous. Ganito kalinaw ang isyu at huwag ng palabuin ito ni Pres. Aquino. Sayang, he could have announced the abolition of pork by simply declaring that he has agreed to itemize the billions of lump sums in the 2014 budget. He missed the opportunity to salvage a little of his sagging popularity by maintaining his stubborn and unreasonable defense of pork.”
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said the 2014 budget pending before Congress is now riddled with “pork.”
“Ang 2014 budget ang patunay na puno pa rin ito ng nagsesebong lump sum allocations, especially the Special Purpose Fund- ang presidential pork barrel! Nakawan, pandarambong nga ang issue, mula noon at hanggang ngayon dahil patuloy pa rin ito kahit sa sinasabing tuwid na daan! Magkaugnay ang DAP at PDAF dahil pareho itong pag abuso ng mga nasa kapangyarihan sa pondo ng gobyerno. Ang usapin ng DAP ay ang paggastos ng executive ng pondo ng gobyerno na walang pahintulot ng Kongreso at sa mga projects na hindi nakasaad sa batas - ito ay unconstitutional!"
Zarate also did not buy the justifications raised by the President. “Hindi porket nakaambag daw ito sa GDP [Gross Domestic Product] ay majustify na ang unconstitutional actions ni PNoy. Bumabagsak ang rating ni Pres Aquino dahil sa kagagawan ng kanyang admin, dahil nalaman at nabisto na ng mamamayan ang hypocrisy ng tuwid na daan slogan! “
ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio felt he heard nothing new in the speech.
“President Aquino's message rehashed some statements previously articulated by Malacañang regarding the PDAF scam, the DAP, and the President's Social Fund. His main message, asking everyone to focus on the prosecution of those who stole from PDAF, is gratuitous, at best.”
Tinio also slammed Aquino for “his depiction of Congress as an institution incapable of providing supplemental appropriations in response to emergency situations, thereby justifying Presidential pork, betrays the President's utter lack of respect for a co-equal branch of government and a cavalier attitude to basic Constitutional tenets. Ultimately, Aquino's speech boiled down to an assertion of moral exceptionalism, a pigheaded defense of Presidential pork, and a repudiation of the public clamor for its abolition."
Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said, "The unconstitutional use of funds through the DAP proves that Mr. Aquino's presidency, although seemingly "nonstick as Teflon," is as unclean as the entire PDAF scam."
"In both cases, the President defended both programs, but remained silent on its misuse. Portions of it does not even constitute savings of government, as funds were impounded without the fiscal year having ended.
"The President thus cannot pretend to be of clean hands in his use of the DAP. In fact, he defended the DAP like a soiled teflon pan - nonstick but unclean. "
Anakpawis Rep. Fernando Hicap pointed out it was damage control.
"If it was for damage control or to get back at his political opponents, the president's address will not erase the prevailing public opinion that corruption persisted under his presidency," Hicap said.
"Aquino's recent statements will further incense people's actions to demand the abolition of the entire pork barrel system, including the presidential pork."
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