Abad dared to explain disbursement of DAP fund

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.  yesterday challenged Budget Secretary Florencio Abad to explain the disbursement of the administration’s multibillion-peso Development Acceleration Program (DAP), now the subject of a post-audit report of the Commission on Audit (COA).

Marcos made the challenge after Abad accused him of lying over documents purportedly coming from his office in relation to the additional P100-million funds which he sought.

Abad said Marcos even requested for a switch in implementing agency.

“As I said before, the first time I heard about this P100-million allotment was when COA wrote me on Sept. 4 and asked me to confirm my signature on a document which allegedly came from my office. In an effort to aid COA with its investigation, we immediately sent them proof that the documents were falsified. Since the initial batch relating to this P100 million were falsified, it would be prudent to treat everything with utmost caution,” Marcos said in a statement.

“There are so many questions that need to be answered, so many irregularities that need to be addressed. So instead of laying blame on a select few and instead of continuing this trial by publicity, DBM (Department of Budget and Management)’s time would be better spent by assisting the COA in their investigation,” Marcos said.

Sources said the DAP funds were part of the savings which the Aquino administration had due to underspending of the budget shortly after President Aquino assumed office in 2010.

The executive department created DAP after the World Bank reportedly rebuffed the administration for its underspending in 2010 until 2011 which caused a slowdown in the economy.

As such, the DBM secretary had full discretion in the disbursement of the amount, which reached over P4 billion.

Marcos reacted adversely to Abad’s claims that he sought the release of P100-million allocation allegedly as part of a P475-million facility that the DBM  extended to the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to bankroll the livelihood projects of local government units (LGUs) in December 2011. 

Marcos denied requesting for the amount which was supposedly part of a lump sum appropriation for six senators.

“I would not have even known that such a release existed were it not for COA’s letter to me last Sept. 4  informing me of such fact. How could I have requested for the release of these funds when I didn’t even know it existed?” Marcos said.

He said it is Abad who should explain the releases of the DAP particularly those which cover the “special” Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs) given to six senators at the height of the impeachment trial of former chief justice Renato Corona last year.

“What I find puzzling though is why the DAR said that the DBM issued six ‘special’ SAROs for six senators. What makes the six senators ‘special’? Why not all 23 senator-judges? I would like to believe that during the impeachment trial, all the senator-judges were swayed by the facts and not by supposed incentives or rewards,” he said.

Marcos, who voted against Corona’s impeachment, said he is also puzzled over Abad’s contention that the controversial P100 million did not come from the DAP but the senator’s Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), also known as pork barrel.