Senate adopts resolution backing Marcos fiscal framework

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has adopted a resolution supporting the Marcos administration’s 2022-2028 Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF), which calls for the alignment of all economic recovery programs and legislative priorities.

With one negative vote and one abstention, the Senate on Wednesday last week adopted Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 introduced by Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda and Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva.

Sen. Sonny Angara, who chairs the finance committee and is a sponsor of the measure, said it was the first time since he helmed the panel and his nearly two decades of serving the public as a legislator that a sitting administration laid out a fiscal framework to guide the decisions of lawmakers and civil servants.

“We believe there’s no argument on the need for the government to be fiscally responsible as it works to jumpstart our economic recovery. Hence, under the MTFF, while the government pursues its socioeconomic agenda, it shall also exercise fiscal discipline,” Angara added.

The MTFF shall serve as the country’s blueprint specifically for fiscal deficit reduction, promotion of fiscal sustainability and enabling robust economic growth while the country recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the near-term, the MTFF underscores the eight-point priority agenda aimed at protecting the purchasing power of Filipinos and mitigating the socioeconomic scarring of the COVID-19 pandemic on families and consumers.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III voted no to the resolution while Sen. Risa Hontiveros abstained.

Pimentel explained that voting in favor of the resolution would bind senators to approve the administration’s fiscal proposals even before they are thoroughly discussed, noting that the MTFF document used the term “anchor,” which connotes “basis,” “dependence” and “fixing an object to a certain place,” among others.

“As such, an affirmative vote can amount to a wholesale surrender to the following legislative measures, like the annual budget, Budget Modernization Bill, National Government Rightsizing Program, imposition of VAT (value-added tax) on digital service providers, taxation of income generated by online content creators, imposition of excise tax on single-use plastics and government pension reform bills,” he said.

“Voting in favor of this concurrent resolution is the complete antithesis of my role as the Minority Leader. To commit myself to the contents of the resolution and the attached MTFF is to abdicate my parliamentary duty to fiscalize and check the validity of proposals and ideas on the floor of the Senate on a case-to-case basis,” he added.

The MTFF’s near-term eight priorities are ensuring food security, reducing transport and logistics costs, reducing energy costs to families, tackling health concerns, strengthening social protection that includes efforts to improve the 4Ps and expedite the implementation of the National ID System, reopening of face-to-face classes in a safe and timely manner, making the bureaucracy more efficient through digitalization and pursuing sound fiscal management through taxation reforms and better revenue allocation.

On the other hand, the medium-term socioeconomic agenda will focus on generating greener, sustainable and high-paying jobs for Filipinos.

This is possible through the promotion of the Philippines as an investment destination, improved infrastructure enhanced by public-private partnerships, ensuring energy security, enhancing employability through better-quality education and training opportunities, expanding and improving digital infrastructure, encouraging research and development and innovation, adopting a “green” and “blue” mindset to managing the economy and establishing livable and sustainable communities.