Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Thursday, August 13 renewed his call to abolish the so-called “leadership fund” or “allocables” from the national budget, saying it is not merely another form of pork barrel, but a worse version of the outlawed system.

Lacson made the remark following the testimony of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) secretary Manuel Bonoan, as well as recent developments on anomalous flood control projects.

Bonoan on Wednesday, faced the Sandiganbayan highlighting how the "leadership fund" gave legislators an opportunity to make budget insertions even during the preparation phase of the national budget.

“The Leadership Fund aka 'allocables' is a worse version  of the outlawed pork barrel system. It added another layer that provided legislators opportunity to make budget insertions even during the Preparation Phase of the national budget, or before the National Expenditure Program (NEP) is transmitted to the Congress for deliberations by both chamber, where further insertions could still be introduced,” said Lacson in a statement.

“With all that said, I maintain that such anomaly in the passage of the national budget must stop,” he added.

Bonoan first mentioned the existence of a “leadership fund” in September 2025 during a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the flood control scandal. Lacson was then the head of the blue ribbon panel.

At the time, Bonoan - replying to Lacson's query on how legislators inserted projects into the budget proposal that had not yet entered the legislative phase - said the DPWH consolidated lawmakers' requested proposals into the NEP, including through the “leadership fund” in the Senate.

The ex-DPWH chief said the proposals were vetted with the agency’s planning service so the projects being included “are consistent with development programs.”

According to Bonoan, the insertions were allowed at the NEP stage to avoid complications during the bicameral conference committee, prompting Lacson to remind him that “the role of lawmakers is in the authorization phase,” or when the budget bill is submitted to Congress for deliberation.

Lacson said the “leadership fund” also helps explain how the public has come to learn of individual allocations amounting to billions of pesos for legislators - including P6.79-billion for Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano and P4.7-billion for Sen. Pilar Juliana Cayetano in Taguig City, from the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA).

He said such individual allocations in Taguig City - one local government unit (LGU) with two legislative districts - led to “illegal reclamation disguised as slope protection and flood mitigation projects, now the subject of an investigation by the Ombudsman and forfeiture proceedings by the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA).”

Moreover, Lacson also said that his call for the abolition of the “leadership fund” threatened then Senate President Vicente Sotto III's leadership.

Bonoan's revelation during his testimony before the Sandiganbayan last Wednesday that all senators in 2024 had at least P500-million of allocations for their priority projects under the “Leadership Funds.”

“While insertions per se do not automatically translate to misuse of public funds, it could open the floodgates of abuse and misuse of public funds for some corrupt politicians,” the senator pointed out.