The Senate will insert a provision in the proposed 2022 P5 trillion national budget obliging all government agencies to prioritize in their purchases locally-manufactured products instead of imported ones.
This was stated by Senator Juan Edgardo ‘’Sonny’’ M. Angara, chairman of the Senate finance committee, said a ‘’buy local or buy Filipino’’ provision would be inserted in the proposed General Appropriation Act (GAA or national budget) that Congress would pass this year.
Angara said this provision would be adopted to prevent a repetition the alleged ‘’premeditated plunder’’ at the Procurement Service of Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) which bought imported medical supplies to address the COVID-19 pandemic instead of from a local manufacturer that offered supplies at a cheaper price.
Angara expressed confidence that Malacanang would not veto the Senate’s ‘’buy local’’ provision and not repeat its conditional veto on this similar provision in the current 2021 budget.
`He sought the help of Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez so that the provision would not be vetoed because it was Lopez himself who suggested this because it would serve as a lesson to the controversial purchases by PS-DBM from Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation.
Senators were surprised how PS-DBM could buy from Pharmally that delivered the Chinese-made medical supplies worth about P11 billion although Pharmally has only a paid up capital of P625,000.
The proposed provision surfaced during a public hearing by the Angara committee of the proposed 2022 budget of DTI.
Senators also cited a provision of Bayanihan 2 directing that priority should be given to Philippine-made products
Senate Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon cited the multi-million-peso loss of EMS Components, manufacturer and exporter of face masks, when PS-BDM bought similar products from Pharmally that imported them from China.
Drilon also said that PS-DBM also bought personal protective equipment (PPE), masks and medical device from Element Trade Limited that came from Hong Kong, from Xusho Construction Machinery Group or China and Mirxies company in Singapore.
Opposition Senator Francis Pangilinan earlier revealed that Element has a paid up capital of $10,000 only.