By Clarist Mae Zablan
(December 26, 2024) – Malacañang on Thursday gave assurance that the national budget for 2025 will “conform to the Constitution” as some concerned citizens and lawmakers questioned the constitutionality of some parts of the budget bill.
In a statement, Executive Sec. Lucas Bersamin maintained that Pres. Bongbong Marcos “has been most prudent in programming and spending” of the country’s limited fiscal resources.”
“The President and the Cabinet are right now (with or without the calls) thoroughly reviewing the various items of the GAA to make them conform to the Constitution,” Bersamin said, referring to the proposed General Appropriations Act or the budget bill.
Marcos is scheduled to sign the budget bill on Rizal Day, December 30. The bill was originally slated to be signed on December 20 but this was postponed.
The proposed 2025 national budget drew flak after the bicameral conference committee decided to slash the funds allocated for some items in the education and health sectors.
The critics stressed that removing the subsidies for state health insurer PhilHealth violates Filipinos’ right to health under the 1987 Constitution.
They also believed that the allocation of P737 billion to the Department of Education (DepEd) is unconstitutional because it is lower than the P1.1 trillion budget allocated to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Some lawmakers maintained that education should have the highest budget allocation in 2025 as mandated by the Constitution, noting that the total education budget is at P1.055 trillion, including the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and state universities and colleges.
(CD | With reports from Maricel Halili, News5)
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