NGO warns on use of P1.4-trillion national budget

MANILA, Philippines - Social Watch Philippines, a non-government group led by former National Treasurer Leonor Briones warned President Arroyo against the use of P1.414-trillion budget for 2009 to address a recession.

The group said the budget will not work as an anti-recession budget if the government does not prioritize social spending for the poor and socially disadvantaged, as well as clear strategy to stimulate the local economy.

“On paper, budgetary allocations to social services may have increased but not if they repeat what they did in the 2008 national budget where a significant portion of the promised fund for social development was never released,” Briones said.

The group also criticized the government’s passage of the P11 billion-supplemental budget for the 2010 elections, saying that this was passed even before the national budget itself.

 “The country is expecting a P177-billion deficit which is much higher than the estimated P102 billion. This will mean more debt as the country borrows more money to finance the deficit,” the former government official added.

The SWP-led Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI), which pioneered civil society engagement in the national budget process, has been consistently calling for the government to release the approved budget in 2008, including P70 million in the budget for community based forest management, P400 million for tuberculosis vaccines, P100 million for promotion of organic farming, funds for teachers’ benefits and funds for the purchase of autoclaves. 

Rene Raya of Action for Economic Reforms (AER) said that the non-release of 2008 funds for environment, health, agriculture and education led to worsening situation of millions of Filipinos.

“How can they say that the budget is an anti-recession budget when this is happening because of lack of funding and unreleased funds for social development?” said Raya.

The group called on the government to sincerely stimulate the economy by prioritizing social expenditures and not just stimulate political spending.

“We also call on non-government organizations to actively monitor the budget and report anomalies to the media and to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee to help senators and congressmen monitor the implementation of the budget. This budget will either help resolve economic problems or plunge the whole nation into a huge debt crisis, if the government is not careful of its spending priorities,’ Briones said.