Drilon: 2014 Budget seeks swift project implementation

MANILA-Senate President Franklin M. Drilon is hopeful that bureaucratic red tape that turns away business sector will be restricted with the new feature of the proposed P2.268-trillion 2014 National Budget that will allow agencies to proceed with implementing their projects on the first day of the year sans submission of Agency Budget Matrices (ABMs) and request for release of Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs).

One of the innovations introduced by the Executive branch to the budget is the budget-as-a-release document regime, which means that the budgets of agencies are considered released to them as soon as the National Budget is enacted, noted Drilon.

SAROs and ABMs are documents that authorize the agency to enter into an obligation or commitment.

“On the first day of the year, the approved National Budget will be enough to authorize all government agencies to obligate their budget without needing to submit budget matrices, which takes considerable time of about two months before agencies could actually submit them,” said Drilon, who, in the last Congress, chaired the Senate Finance Committee that hears the budget.

“That one or two months being spent by agencies in preparing these documentary requirements could have been spent in the actual implementation of important programs such as the building of classrooms, health centers, or provision of medicines to our elderly,” emphasized Drilon.

“The new system, once in place, can help cut red tape and ease and speed-up the processes securing a really early delivery of much-needed programs and services,” said Drilon, noting, however, that there will still be minimal items in the budget that will be needing clearance from proper authorities which may include, among others, intelligence and lump-sum funds.

"Sa tuwing may budget hearing at sisitahin namin yung agencies kung bakit delayed yung implementation ng kanilang mga proyekto, scapegoat nila ang DBM. Wala pong ni-release na budget ang DBM. Late dumating ang SARO," said Drilon.

(“Whenever we would ask agencies to explain why there are delays in the implementation of their programs, they would pass the blame to budget department, making it their scapegoat. The DBM did not release us funds. The SARO is released late.")

Drilon warned agencies: "you will have no one to blame but yourselves if you still fail to implement your programs and deliver services to our people in a timely manner come 2014."

He also encouraged agencies to proceed with the bidding process, short of award, while the budget is still being deliberated, so that once it is approved, they can already obligate their budgets. 

PPP for Iloilo River rehabilitation eyed

MANILA-A possible public-private partnership for restoring the Iloilo River is in the offing between the Iloilo City Government and the Manuel V. Pangilinan-led firms, a development that is being pushed by Senate President Franklin M. Drilon.

Drilon and Iloilo City Mayor Jed Mabilog met with Mr. Pangilinan and his team today/July 30 to brief the group of the business tycoon regarding Iloilo River and efforts, both short and long terms, being undertaken to revive the river and make it the anchor of economic development in the city.

“The group of Mr. Pangilinan is examining the entire plan to determine if there can be viable significant public-private partnership. Nothing is certain yet at this point because we are still in the exploratory talks as to which aspect of the rehabilitation plan hey can best intervene in,” said Drilon.

“I hope, as of all of us would like to see, to get Mr. Pangilinan and his group signed up for Iloilo River rehabilitation,” he added.

Drilon told Mr. Pangilinan that the Iloilo River is now a finalist in an international environmental feat known as the Thiess International Riverprize award because of the various collaborative undertakings that have been done to clean and save the 20-kilometer river from further damage.  

Iloilo River is representing the whole of Asia in the said award along with Bolshaya River in Russia, Mara River in Kenya, Africa and the Murray Darling Basin in Australia, noted Drilon.

Drilon also said to Mr. Pangilinan that the river used to contain various kinds of natural and man-made obstructions that altered the original flow of the water and brought about pollution to the river.

But with the strong political will and collaborative efforts among its stakeholders, Drilon said the redevelopment of Iloilo River is already showing positive effects.

Drilon relayed to MVP, as he is commonly referred to, the various activities the Iloilo River Development Council has so far achieved which include, among others, the removal of 10 derelicts and 38 idle vessels, fish pens; and relocation of about 1,000 families living along the danger zones of the river and its tributaries.

Drilon also constructed an Esplanade - funded through his priority development assistance fund - along the river to boost tourism in the city and to increase environmental awareness among its residents.

Legarda: Manage Our Environment Well Towards a Better Economy

MANILA-Senator Loren Legarda today said that the country should work on improving the state of the environment to include the Philippines among the top 20 economies over the next four decades.

Citing a prediction of international bank HSBC, Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Environment, said that the Philippines would leapfrog 27 places to become the 16th largest economy in the world by 2050, driven by an increasing and productive population – up to 70% more people by 2050.

“However, if we do not manage our environment well, and make our urban and land use planning risk sensitive, this increase in population and economic activity would translate to an equivalent increase in exposure to disasters,” Legarda noted.

“Our environment and the ecosystem services it provides support human life and provide the basic materials for our economy, such as food, fuel and clean water. It also sequesters carbon emissions, regulates erosion and landslides and reduces floods,” she added.

Legarda said that air pollution affects the productivity of citizens as it poses threat to human health. Small particles inhaled can damage lung tissue, aggravate existing cardiovascular diseases and lung problems or even cause cancer.

“The air quality of our country is still dirty but gradually improving. In 2004 the total suspended particulates (TSP) in our air was 145 micrograms per cubic meter. By 2011 the TSP level was 99,” she noted.

Meanwhile, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, of the country’s total land area of about 30 million hectares, only 7.168 million hectares, or 24.27 percent, are forest covered. The ideal should be at least 12 million hectares or 48 percent of the total land area.

The past three decades have also seen the rapid decline of the Philippine coastal ecosystem, which also needs to improve — 70 percent of the mangroves and 20 percent of its sea-grass have been destroyed; nearly 90 percent of coral reefs are under threat; and biomass of coastal fish stocks now stand at only 10 percent.

“To improve the situation, we need to start looking at how existing initiatives like the National Greening Program and the Integrated Coastal Management Program can be implemented fully,” Legarda said.

The National Greening Program, which was officially launched in May 2011, aims to plant 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares of land by 2016. For 2011, 89.6 million seedlings have been planted nationwide, while in 2012, a total of 125.6 million seedlings were planted.

“In parallel, we need to look at how sometimes a greener approach can be a more resilient approach. For example, instead of spending US$ 6.8 billion in drainage improvements, New York invested US$ 5.3 billion in green infrastructure – permeable pavements, more green areas, and other measures to address drainage capacity. Green infrastructure acts like a sponge – absorbing and regulating peak water flows,” Legarda said.

“We need to promote a new approach in dealing with climate change and disasters that would not only protect our environment, but would also reap development benefits. Let us pursue the path towards sustainable development so that we will be able to weather the many challenges of the fast changing environment,” Legarda concluded.

Gov’t to hire 33,194 teachers, build 43,183 classrooms, buy 42.6 M books next year

MANILA-Senate President ProTempore Ralph Recto today described the proposed education budget for 2014 as a “big shopping cart of school supplies” that will close manpower and equipment gaps in  public schools.

Recto said the Department of Education will hire 33,194 teachers and 1,500 principals next year, a move that will cost P9.5 billion in initial year salary.

“With this number, it can be said that DepEd will be holding a year-round job fair in 2014,” Recto said as he expressed hopes that DepEd will “use competence and not connection” as the yardstick in choosing new mentors.

To end the perennial problem of classroom lack, Recto said government next year will build 43,183 new classrooms, repair 9,503 existing ones, and buy 1.6 million seats at a cost of P44.6 billion.

“In terms of rooms to be built, this is by far the biggest in history,” Recto said.

The number of textbooks to be procured – 42.6 million  – will also break the record, he said.   On top of this, 38,351 sets of science and math laboratory equipment will be acquired.

Government is also planning to build 10 library hubs, which Recto described as “book centrals” that will cater to multiple school districts.

Total tab for the new books, science equipment and library hubs is P8.3 billion, Recto said.

These acquisitions, he explained, will be funded out of the P336.9 billion DepEd budget for 2014, an amount 15 percent higher than what the government’s biggest agency is getting this year.

DepEd’s budget in turn is but one component of the larger “education, culture and manpower” sector which has been allotted P389.5 billion in 2014.

Included in this sector are the allocations for Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and state universities and colleges which have been earmarked P3.7 and P39.3 billion for next year, respectively.

Recto said education spending of the government  “is a combination of catching up with existing backlogs and frontloading for future needs.”

The government’s K to12 program requires huge investments and the budget is amortizing in advance what needs to be bought.  “Previous budgets were downpayments. The 2014 budget is a continuation of the installment plan.” 

Drilon: 2014 Budget seeks swift project implementation

MANILA-Senate President Franklin M. Drilon is hopeful that bureaucratic red tape that turns away business sector will be restricted with the new feature of the proposed P2.268-trillion 2014 National Budget that will allow agencies to proceed with implementing their projects on the first day of the year sans submission of Agency Budget Matrices (ABMs) and request for release of Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs).

One of the innovations introduced by the Executive branch to the budget is the budget-as-a-release document regime, which means that the budgets of agencies are considered released to them as soon as the National Budget is enacted, noted Drilon.

SAROs and ABMs are documents that authorize the agency to enter into an obligation or commitment.

“On the first day of the year, the approved National Budget will be enough to authorize all government agencies to obligate their budget without needing to submit budget matrices, which takes considerable time of about two months before agencies could actually submit them,” said Drilon, who, in the last Congress, chaired the Senate Finance Committee that hears the budget.

“That one or two months being spent by agencies in preparing these documentary requirements could have been spent in the actual implementation of important programs such as the building of classrooms, health centers, or provision of medicines to our elderly,” emphasized Drilon.

“The new system, once in place, can help cut red tape and ease and speed-up the processes securing a really early delivery of much-needed programs and services,” said Drilon, noting, however, that there will still be minimal items in the budget that will be needing clearance from proper authorities which may include, among others, intelligence and lump-sum funds.

"Sa tuwing may budget hearing at sisitahin namin yung agencies kung bakit delayed yung implementation ng kanilang mga proyekto, scapegoat nila ang DBM. Wala pong ni-release na budget ang DBM. Late dumating ang SARO," said Drilon.

(“Whenever we would ask agencies to explain why there are delays in the implementation of their programs, they would pass the blame to budget department, making it their scapegoat. The DBM did not release us funds. The SARO is released late.")

Drilon warned agencies: "you will have no one to blame but yourselves if you still fail to implement your programs and deliver services to our people in a timely manner come 2014."

He also encouraged agencies to proceed with the bidding process, short of award, while the budget is still being deliberated, so that once it is approved, they can already obligate their budgets.