Roque says part of NTF-ELCAC budget to go to typhoon-hit Bicol
MANILA, Philippines — As the country endures a lingering pandemic and the damage wrought by the strongest storm of the year, the president's spokesman said he sees no need to realign the anti-communist task force's proposed P19-billion budget for 2021.
"In my opinion, there is no need to realign," presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in Filipino during a virtual briefing held in Catanduanes, explaining that, as areas with active insurgents, Bicol and Catanduanes— which bore the brunt of Typhoon Rolly's lashing over the weekend— are already slated to receive funds from the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict.
"Because we know that development is necessary to get rid of the problem when it comes to insurgency. And these are the victims of the typhoon, they will be the beneficiaries of the ELCAC fund. So there is no need to realign there," he added in Filipino.
Of the around P19 billion allocated for the NTF-ELCAC's budget in 2021, P16 billion is for the funding of the Barangay Development Program. However, under this program, only barangays which have been certified by authorities as cleared of communist rebels will receive P20 million in funds from the national government.
"Let's just continue to fund the ELCAC and big funds will go here to [Bicol] and Catanduanes where there really are active insurgents," Roque further said in Filipino. It is unclear how areas which have been characterized by the presidential spokesman as having active insurgents might be eligible to receive funds from the anti-insurgency task force.
Roque was asked about realigning NTF-ELCAC funds not just for typhoon relief but for response to the COVID-19 crisis as well. He did not touch on realigning funds for pandemic response and was not further prodded by the journalists on state-run PTV.
'Red-tagging' task force
This comes on the heels of a still simmering debate over the NTF-ELCAC's practice of accusing government officials, celebrities, and progressive groups of being part of the Communist Party of the Philippines. Often, individuals or groups accused of being part of the CPP by military officials are those who criticize government policies or are vocal in their championing of human rights.
CPP membership has not been a crime in the Philippines since the repeal of the Anti-Subversion Law in 1992. The CPP and the NPA have yet to be proscribed under the new Anti-Terrorism Act.
READ: Makabayan bloc not doing anything illegal in Congress, Esperon admits
Amid this controversy, minority senators have floated redirecting of the NTF-ELCAC's funds for relief and rehabilitation efforts for Rolly — the strongest typhoon of 2020 — with Sen. Risa Hontiveros pointing out that the task force's significant allocation surpasses the P632 million allotted to the Department of Housing Settlements and Urban Development.
She also pointed out that other key agencies such as the Office of the Ombudsman with P3.36 billion, the Department of Budget & Management with P1.9 billion, and even the Department of Finance with P17.46 billion received smaller allocations than the anti-insurgency fund.
Rep. Carlos Zarate and Rep. Ferdinand Gaite from the left-leaning Bayan Muna party-list previously urged the Senate to defund the anti-comunist task force altogether.
Of the NTF-ELCAC's total budget, Hontiveros earlier called for P8 billion to be realigned to the health sector. She also sought to redirect another P2 billion from the task force's budget for typhoon relief and rehabilitation.
At least seven senators are willing to back the full or partial realignment of the NTF-ELCAC's budget, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon told Inquirer on Wednesday. While he would not identify these senators, Drilon himself said he would like to see to the entire task force's budget realigned.
The Senate chief fiscalizer previous sounded the alarm over the manner of disbursements for the Barangay Development Fund, saying that the NTF-ELCAC is given too much discretion.
Sen. Ping Lacson, who chairs the Senate defense committee, initiated a probe on red-tagging, saying its intended outcome was to craft “proper guidelines that will prevent misunderstanding between the public and the military and ensuring the protection of the constitutional rights of the people.”
The investigation was spurred by a series of so-called warnings and accusations hurled by Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr., spokesman for the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, against celebrities, local government leaders and a women's group.
However, the Senate hearing became a site for further red-tagging. Many of those accused denied the allegations against them and expressed fear that such rhetoric from high ranking military official endangered their lives as well as their families.
READ: As Senate holds hearing on red-tagging, Amnesty urges end to 'deadly practice' | Casiño, artists slam ‘baseless’ accusations at Senate hearing on red-tagging
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