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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Drilon questions unusual quick release of P10.6-B NTF-ELCAC budget

Drilon questions unusual quick release of P10.6-B NTF-ELCAC budget

Published May 4, 2021 02:10 pm

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Tuesday, May 4 questioned the “speedy” release of P10.6-billion out of the P19-billion controversial budget of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

The move comes after majority of the lawmakers called for the realignment of the NTF-ELCAC’s fund to augment the government’s coronavirus (COVID-19) response following criticisms against its red-tagging activities.

The government’s anti-insurgency task force has a total appropriation of P19-billion under the 2021 national budget of which P16.4-billion will go to the Barangay Development Program.

Under the program, over 800 barangays that have been cleared of insurgency stand to receive P20-million for development projects.

Drilon noted the NTF-ELCAC’s program had already received P3.14-billion as of March 24. But at the height of criticisms both from majority and minority blocs in both houses of Congress against the task force’s red-tagging of community pantry organizers, P7.54-billion was suddenly released in April for the said program.

“Bakit po parang nagmadaling ilabas ang budget? Bakit yung pondo sa Marawi rehabilitation mabagal ang paglabas ng pondo? Saan po gagamitin itong P10.68-billion (Why did it seem they were in a hurry to release the budget? Why did the funds for the Marawi rehabilitation were not released much faster? Where are they going to use the P10.68-billion funds)?” Drilon asked.

In contrast, the minority leader said the supposed P24-billion wage subsidy for private sector workers remains a proposal and unfunded.

“Defeating the virus and addressing the effects of the pandemic such as unemployment and hunger should be our priority. There are 62 percent Filipino households who experienced hunger due to COVID-19 pandemic. there are 4.4 million Filipinos who lost jobs in 2020,” the minority leader pointed out.

“Yet, the government is giving priority to NTF-ELCAC’s anti-insurgency program rather than use the funds to expand ‘ayuda’, buy vaccines and feed the poor,” he said.

Drilon lamented there is lack of transparency on the budget of the anti-insurgency task force. He urged its officials to submit to Congress a quarterly report on the utilization of the P19-billion fund as mandated under the 2021 General Appropriations Act (GAA).

For its part, he said the Senate leadership should use its oversight function to scrutinize the use of NTF-ELCAC’s funds and compel the task force to submit a report to Congress.

“Saan po ba napunta ang P10.68-billion? Anong barangay? Anong siyudad o bayan ang nakinabang dito? (where did the P10.68-billion go? To which barangay? What cities and municipalities that benefitted from it)?” he asked.

“In the spirit of transparency, let us publish the data and inform the public,” the senator stressed.

Related Tags

Franklin Drilon National Budget NTF-ELCAC anti-insurgency task force General Appropriations Act (GAA)
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