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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Drilon vows to pursue more funds for health workers using NTF-ELCAC budget

Drilon vows to pursue more funds for health workers using NTF-ELCAC budget

Published Sep 12, 2021 02:05 pm

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Sunday, Sept. 12 vowed to ensure that more money would be allocated to fund the needs of healthcare workers who are struggling to provide medical services amid the COVID-19 pandemic by making sure there are programmed funds for them.

Drilon noted that the government can make use of the funds lodged under the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) to fund the Special Risk Allowance (SRAs) of medical workers as well as provide additional cash assistance to the poor and those who were displaced by the pandemic.

The lawmaker noted that the funds for the NTF-ELCAC is part of the programmed appropriation, while the P45-billion that is supposed to buy additional COVID-19 vaccines has been listed under the unprogrammed fund under the P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022.

“Pagdating ng budget ng NTF-ELCAC, tayo ay magtatanong kung paano nila nagamit yung P16-billion at bakit lumaki ng P28-billion (When it comes to the NTF-ELCAC funding, we will ask how they were able to use the P16-billion budget for 2021 and why their proposed budget for next year has increased to P28-billion),” Drilon said in an interview on Radio DZBB.

“ Iyan ay busisiin natin pagdating ng budget sa Senado (We will scrutinize that once the budget reaches the Senate),” Drilon stressed.

Drilon reiterated his belief the 2022 national budget should be responsive to the needs of the public especially during this COVID-19 pandemic.

The NTF-ELCAC’s budget, he said, is a potential source for additional COVID-19 pandemic response funds.

“Sa aking tingin dapat bigyan ng priority ang ating medical workers. Ang nakikita natin nating source ay yung NTF-ELCAC na hindi naman kailangan agad dahilan ang priority natin ay yung pandemya, SRA ng medical workers at ayuda (Our priority should be our medical workers. And we see the NTF-ELCAC as a potential source because we don’t need see anti-insurgency as a priority but this pandemic, the SRA for medical workers and cash aid),” Drilon said.

“Tama po iyan, sigurado ang budget ng NTF-ELCAC pero yung pambili ng bakuna ay maghihintay pa kung may pera na papasok, kung may sobrang buwis o loan (that’s right, because imagine the budget for the NTF-ELCAC is already certain, yet the government would just have to wait for available funds or loan just to buy vaccines),” he lamented.

Related Tags

special risk allowance Franklin Drilon 2022 national budget COVID-19 response NTF-ELCAC
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