By Liza Soriano
THE Senate Committee on Finance approved on Wednesday the P10.707 billion 2024 proposed budget of the Office of the President.
The hearing regarding the said proposed budget only lasted for 20 minutes as there was no senator who asked a question to Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin who represented President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
OP has a proposed amount of P4.56 billion for confidential intelligence funds. Meanwhile, a total of P10 billion is allocated for CIF of the P5.768 trillion national budget for 2024.
“There are no colleagues [here], meaning they have a vote of confidence in your budget, so we will favorably endorse your budget for plenary consideration,” chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance Senator Sonny Angara said.
Earlier, Gabriela Party-list Representative Arlene Brosas asked Marcos to drop his confidential funds, saying that they must be redirected to basic social services.
“We call on President Marcos Jr. to give up his P4.56 billion confidential and intelligence funds, which is almost half of the total CIF. These funds should be redirected to basic social services, especially amid the high prices of food and meager wages,” Brosas said.
(ai/mnm)
