Senate urged: Pass 2022 budget early

MANILA, Philippines — With the House of Representatives having “done its job” and passed the P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022, a congresswoman said senators must do the same as soon as possible so that President Duterte can sign the measure before the year ends to hasten the country’s recovery from the pandemic.

“We appeal to our senators to swiftly pass the 2022 national budget that is expected to help the country recover and emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Deputy Speaker Bernadette Herrera yesterday said.

“The House of the People has done its job. We now await our friends from the Senate to do theirs,” the Henerasyon party-list representative said.

Led by Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, the House transmitted its version of the General Appropriations Bill to the Senate last Oct. 25, two days ahead of the target date set by the lower chamber.

Herrera thanked Velasco, House appropriations committee chairman Rep. Eric Go Yap of ACT-CIS and the rest of her House colleagues for the swift passage of the budget bill.

“This really shows the collective commitment and resolve of the House to help Filipinos and the economy recover from the devastating impacts of the pandemic by ensuring uninterrupted delivery of government services,” she said.

Herrera expressed optimism that “the Senate, under the able leadership of finance committee chairman Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, will be able to pass its own version in a timely manner.”

“The ideal timeline is for President Duterte to sign the budget bill into law before Christmas,” she added.

In an interview with reporters yesterday, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said the chamber expects to pass the budget measure by the first week of December.

Angara’s panel is now preparing its committee report on the proposed budget, for presentation before the plenary shortly after the Nov. 8 resumption of session.

Herrera echoed an earlier statement by the Speaker about the importance of enacting the national budget before January 2022, as a reenacted budget would surely dampen the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.

The government’s pandemic response and economic recovery plan for the country remain the top priority in the proposed 2022 General Appropriations Bill (GAB), the last budget under the Duterte administration. – Paolo Romero