Senator Sherwin Gatchalian hopes that Senator Ronald Dela Rosa will fulfill his duties in the upcoming Bicameral Conference Committee, or bicam, as it begins its deliberations on Saturday, Dec. 13. In a Zoom interview on Friday, Dec. 12, Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said...
Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada withdrew as a member of the bicameral conference committee on the proposed 2026 national budget. Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri announced this after the Senate approved a resolution adjusting Congress’ legislative calendar to accommodate the...
The Senate on Tuesday, December 9 said it will be extending its sessions until December 23 for the passage of the P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026. It was Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri who announced the adjustment in the Upper Chamber’s legislative calendar, saying...
With 17 affirmative votes, no negative votes and zero abstention, the Senate on Tuesday, December 9 approved on third and final reading House Bill No. 4058, which contains the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance...
A move is underway in the Senate to lower the value-added tax (VAT) imposed on purchased goods and services. Under Senate Bill No. 1552 filed by Senator Erwin Tulfo, Section 106 of the National Internal Revenue Code would be amended to bring down the current 12 percent VAT to 10 percent. The...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson clarified that more than P79-billion has likely been lost to ghost flood control projects dating back to 2016, not counting substandard ones. Lacson said that the initial figure of P180-B was an “extrapolation.” Lacson said this was based on...
Former Senator Grace Poe on Wednesday, Dec. 3 addressed the recommendation by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to refer her for further investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman, asserting that the move confirms the allegations against her are unfounded. “The ICI’s...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson said on Wednesday, Dec. 3, that more than P180 billion has likely been lost to ghost flood control projects dating back to 2016, not counting substandard ones. Lacson said he and Senate finance committee chairman Sherwin Gatchalian arrived at this...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said on Monday, November 24 that the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee is ready to release a partial report on its investigation on the anomalous government flood control projects. “We will file a partial committee report, based on the...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson underscored on Saturday, Nov. 22, that the Senate will not allow the reenactment next year of the 2025 national budget--the same budget that had earlier been described as corrupt to the core. Lacson says this is why the Senate is adopting measures...
Amid persistent criticism that the Office of the Ombudsman’s probe was all talk, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said on Saturday, Nov. 22, that the arrest orders for resigned congressman Zaldy Co and 17 others were proof that those doubts were misplaced. Lacson had this...
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Tuesday, Nov. 18, rejected former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co’s allegations that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered ₱100 billion in budget insertions and received a supposed ₱25-billion “commission” from the amount. During the...
