DOTr budget cuts could derail ongoing railway projects, lawmaker warns

Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito has raised concerns that the impending budget cuts in the proposed budget of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) could potentially derail the country’s ongoing railway projects, particularly the North-South Commuter Railway System and the first phase of the Metro Manila Subway System.

At the continuation of the Senate’s plenary debates on the proposed P5.268-trillion national budget for 2023, Ejercito revealed that the House of Representatives rendered a budget cut of around P40-billion on the DOTr’s 2023 appropriations for the commuter railway system, while about P10-bilion was also slashed from the supposed budget for the subway system.

On the other hand, the Senate’s version showed a P69-billion slash from the budget’s unprogrammed appropriations, which will be used to pay for the live contracts of the said project’s contractors.

Both the national government and the country’s economic recovery will suffer from these budget cuts on the railway sector, Ejercito warned.

“If ever there are budget cuts, definitely, the right of way acquisition will be affected. Ibig sabihin po nun, kapag magkaroon po ng delays sa (It means that if there are delays in the) right of way and relocation of utilities, definitely, the construction and civil works will also stop. Yung civil works, pati mechanical, ay load po natin (The civil works, including mechanical, are on us),” Ejercito said during the Senate's deliberation on the DOTr's proposed P122.56-billion budget in 2023 on Wednesday night.

“I appeal to my colleagues to restore the budget that was cut. Halos kalahati (It was almost half). This will definitely affect the schedules. This will also entail financial charges. We will be burdened by these financial charges,” he pointed out.

While most of the country’s railway projects are funded by international partners, such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the national government is expected to shoulder the right-of-way (ROW) acquisition of land for railway facilities, as well as the value added tax (VAT) that would be incurred by the said projects.

Senator Grace Poe, sponsor of the DOTr’s 2023 budget, admitted that the budget cuts that Ejercito pointed out could potentially delay the country’s railway projects by about a year.

“We keep doing this for all of our projects. This is not new. We need to be able to see what the priorities are and hopefully, this is one of them,” Poe said.

But Ejercito warned these budget cuts could also potentially damage the country’s image, as well as the Marcos administration before the international community.

“More importantly, the delay in the completion of our railway projects because of lack of government support will also bring a lack of confidence from investors,” Ejercito said.

“It will paint a bad picture in the international community, while the President is trying hard to sell the country, that we are already open for business. The government should do its part,” he reiterated.