|
By Maricel V. Cruz, Reporter
The chairman of the House Committee on
Appropriations, Rep. Edcel Lagman of Albay, has allayed fears of a
reenacted budget for 2008 and promised that the bicameral conference
committee will come up with a reconciled version of the proposed
P1.227-trillion national budget for next year before Congress
resumes session on January 28.
Lagman assured that the approval of the House
Bill 2454 by February next year “will not adversely affect the
operations of the government.”
“The first two months of the new fiscal year
would only entail the preparation for the impending budgetary
releases while the allocations for personal services are
automatically disbursed,” Lagman explained.
Lagman also expressed high hopes that the House
and the Senate will be able to resolve whatever differences they may
have during discussions at the bicameral conference committee.
“The differences between the House and Senate
versions can be resolved and only the technical aspect of printing
the final version of the annual appropriations measure will take
some time,” Lagman said.
The House appropriations chief earlier said it
was only the “lack of physical time” that failed the bicameral
conference committee to pass the budget bill before Congress went on
Christmas break on December 20.
The bicameral conference committee has decided
to work during the Christmas break to finalize the forging of a
reconciled budget bill.
Malacañang asks for removal of P17 billion
Malacañang urged the bicameral committee to
remove the P17-billion insertion made by the House into President
Gloria Arroyo’s pork proposal to resolve the impasse over the
new budget.
Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya said Thursday
that they want Congress to end the deadlock between the houses of
Congress so a new budget could be passed by February next year.
He earlier said that if the House would continue
to insist on the insertions, President Arroyo may be forced to veto
the budget.
The Senate and the House panels deliberating on
the proposed budget reached a deadlock due to the proposed P17
billion for the Office of the President.
The amount under contention even reached P30
billion, after the Senate summed up all the money reportedly
proposed by the Palace.
But Malacañang said the extra amount is
actually included in the budgets of the National Economic and
Development Authority, Department of National Defense and others,
which have been spending for development and counterinsurgency
projects in the countryside.
More allocations for indigenous people
Meanwhile, Sen. Edgardo J. Angara said Thursday
he increased the budget of the National Commission on Indigenous
Peoples (NCIP) “to give them the attention and funding they
deserve.”
The NCIP is an attached agency of the Department
of Agrarian Reform.
In the Senate-approved version of the national
budget, Angara has augmented the NCIP budget of P485.31 million by
P6.5 million for the conti-nuation of its literacy program, and
P100,000 for IT equipment, raising its total budget to P491.91
million.
“Programs targeted at keeping them abreast
with the modern times while at the same time helping them preserve
their unique culture should be promoted.” Angara, chairman of
the Senate Subcommittee C on Finance, explained.
-- With Angelo S. Samonte and Efren L. Danao
|
