The creation of a Select Oversight Committee on Confidential and Intelligence Expenses will help ensure that agencies who are given confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) would be able to use this specific appropriation for the purpose it was intended for, Senate Committee on Finance chief Sen. Sonny Angara said on Sunday, November 20.
Angara pointed this out as he vouched that the P500-million and P150-million CIFs that the Senate approved for the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd)—both of which are headed by Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio—would be utilized properly and wisely.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III and fellow minority Senator Risa Hontiveros have both vowed to push for the realignment of the funds under the Vice President during the period of amendments on the proposed P5.268-trillion national budget for 2023 scheduled this week.
“Meron talagang paraan para talagang bantayan yan. At iyan ay tinutukan din ng ating Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri nung mag-file po siya ng Resolusyon na buhayin po itong Select Oversight Committee on Confidential and Intelligence Expenses (There is really a mechanism on how to really look after that. And that was also pointed out by our Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri when he filed a resolution to revive the Select Oversight Committee on Confidential and Intelligence Expenses),” Angara said in a Radio DZBB interview.
Last week, the Senate President filed the resolution to form an oversight panel that will investigate the utilization of CIFs allocated under the proposed 2023 national budget after several former senators pushed for its activation.
The Senate finance panel head noted it was an advice of the former Senate president Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and former Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, who also once chaired the committee.
“Ipinaalala nila na merong ganyang komite dati na hindi lang basta-basta pinapalusot lahat ng gastos ng mga ahensya sa confidential at intelligence expenses. (They reminded that there used to be a similar committee that did not just slip all the expenses of the agencies into confidential and intelligence expenses),” Angara pointed out.
“At yan, kailangan ilabas nila kung talagang nararapat sa national security para sa darating na mga taon, ma-evaluate o mabantayan din yan ng kongreso pagdating dito sa budget (And that, they need to release if it is really appropriate for national security for the coming years, Congress can also evaluate or monitor that when it comes to the budget),” he said.
Angara, nevertheless, said there is a possibility that the CIFs under the DepEd and the OVP could be slashed and/or channeled to other agencies.
But on a personal note, the senator said he hopes that the CIFs allocated for the vice president would be maintained to enable Duterte-Carpio’s office to function well, as what President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. would want to happen.
Pag-aaralan po namin yan, pero sa akin nga, parang hindi maganda na halal po ng tao yan at binigyan po ng Pangulo sa ilalim ng kanyang kauna-unahang budget. Ipinagkatiwala kay VP Sara Duterte po yan, tapos tatanggalan po natin ng pondo -- parang hindi yata (We will study that, but to me, it doesn't seem good that people chose it and the President gave it to her under his first budget. That was entrusted to VP Sara Duterte, then we will remove the funds -- I don't think so),”
“Kung ako po ang tatanungin nang personal, huwag naman po natin ilabas yun sa kanyang opisina, sapagkat yun ay gusto ng taumbayan, gusto ng Pangulo na magtagumpay po ang ating Bise Presidente dahil siya ay isang mahalagang bahagi ng kanyang administrasyon. Kaya nga, ipinagkatiwala sa kanya yung one of the biggest department sa ating pamahalaan at dyan nakasalalay po yung kinabukasan ng ating mga kabataan (If you ask me personally, let's not bring it out fro her office, because that's what the people want. The President wants that our Vice President succeed because she is an important part of his administration. That's why, she was entrusted with one of the biggest departments in our government and the future of our youth depends on that),” Angara stressed.
“Yun ang personal na pasya ko lang po. Pero puwedeng mag-iba po yan dahil alam nyo naman ang Senado ay isang collegial body. At kung merong mga contentious issues or mga kontrobersyal, puwedeng maiba yan dahil pagbobotohan yan at kung minsan may kompromiso. Ganun talaga ang proseso sa isang collegial body. Ibig sabihin, hindi iisang tao ang nagdedesisyon kundi yung sinasabing collegial ay yung kolektiba ang nagpapasya (That's just my personal decision. But that can change because you know the Senate is a collegial body. And if there are contentious issues or controversial ones, it can be different because it will be voted upon by the members and sometimes there will be a compromise. That is exactly the process in a collegial body. That means, it is not a single person who makes the decision, but what is said to be collegial is the collective decision),” he explained.
Angara earlier said the Senate is aiming to approve the 2023 national budget by end of November so the President can sign the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) before Christmas.
President Marcos has certified the 2023 budget bill as urgent, citing the need for continuous government operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to support programs for full economic recovery.