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DESPITE President Arroyo’s call for front-loading public
expenditures in the first semester, the Department of Finance said
last week that the government actually spent less last January.
Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said total
disbursements in January amounted to P100.9 billion, or 1.4 percent
lower than the P102.4 billion in the same period last year, as
interest payments likewise dropped 7 percent to P30 billion from
P32.3 billion year on year.
With revenues of P87 billion, which was 19.7
percent higher than last year, the government ended January with a
budget deficit of P13.9 billion, or lower than the P29.7 billion
incurred in the same period a year ago.
Of the revenues generated, the Bureaus of
Internal Revenue (BIR), of Customs, and of Treasury contributed
P56.7 billion, P14.7 billion and P6.2 billion, respectively.
Teves said about 60 percent of this year’s
capital outlays, or an estimated P113 billion, would be released in
the first six-months to keep the domestic economy afloat amid a
US-led global slowdown.
Teves said the government would prioritize the
additional spending by improving tax collection and generating
higher non-tax revenue, including proceeds from the sale of state
assets and higher dividends from state-owned firms.
“We are closely monitoring the developments in
the US and other major markets, and we are committed to doing what
is necessary to mitigate the impact of a potential global slowdown
on our economic growth, and to maintain fiscal discipline,” Teves
said.
The official also said the government is still
abiding by its original balanced-budget program this year.
The finance department also revised last
year’s deficit to P12.4 billion from an earlier preliminary
estimate of P9.4 billion.
“The P3 billion increase in the final
deficit figure was due to higher spending on infrastructure and
social services despite a slight improvement in revenues,” Teves
said.
Total revenues last year amounted to P1.137
trillion, while expenditures reached P1.149 trillion. The BIR
collected P713.6 billion, while Customs turned in P209.4 billion.
The treasury bureau contributed P67.9 billion while other offices
P145.5 billion.
-- Chino S. Leyco
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