Senator Loren Legarda, on Tuesday, March 24, expressed frustration with the Department of Energy (DOE) over its reasoning in being unable to secure congressional approval for the use of supplemental funds by the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC).

During the first organizational meeting of the Senate Proactive Response and Oversight for Timely and Effective Crisis Strategy (PROTECT), Energy Undersecretary Alessandro Sales said PNOC could not release and utilize its funds for a supplemental budget without approval from Congress, which is currently on a session break.

Legarda, however, rejected the explanation, stressing that the Senate could have acted promptly had the executive branch formally communicated the urgency of the request.

“Congressional approval is needed. So hasn’t this been communicated to both houses?” she asked.

“Kasi po, we were willing to go on a special session. May we know? Number one, no GAA funds needed. It’s with PNOC, and all it needed was congressional approval... May I know, kailan po binigay ng DOE sa Senado? Kailan natanggap ‘yung sulat? Kailan binigay sa atensyon ng leadership at ng Chair ng komite? (Because we were willing to go on a special session. May we know: first, no GAA funds are needed—it’s already with PNOC, and all it needed was congressional approval...May I know when did the DOE submit this to the Senate? When was the letter received? When was it brought to the attention of the leadership and the committee chair?)” Legarda added.

The senator underscored that the Senate would not have adjourned if there had been a pending request from the executive department, adding that no such appeal was raised during last week’s hearing attended by Energy Secretary Sharon Garin.

She further stressed that it was misleading to suggest congressional inaction as the cause of delays.

“Excuse me, hindi po nagbe‑break ang Senado na hindi inaaksyunan ang hinihiling ng Executive… Hindi po magandang pakinggan yan (Excuse me, the Senate does not go on break without acting on requests from the Executive… That is not good to hear),” she said.

It was later explained by the DOE that the letter had just been sent a day before the hearing.

The meeting was convened to address the economic impact of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairperson of the committee, said the Senate aims to assess the full economic impact of the conflict on the Philippines; evaluate government readiness in managing potential disruptions in energy supply, inflation, and employment; develop a unified national contingency plan; and initiate necessary policy measures to mitigate the crisis and protect the welfare of the Filipino people.