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P4.5-B intelligence, confidential funds inihirit para sa Office of the President sa 2023

Philstar.com
P4.5-B intelligence, confidential funds inihirit para sa Office of the President sa 2023
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. answers question directed to him by the members of the Palace media during a press briefing at the Heroes Hall in Malacañang, Tuesday, July 5, 2022.
Presidential Photos/Robertson Ninal

MANILA, Philippines — Humiling ng tig-P2.25 bilyon para sa kontrobersyal na confidential at intelligence funds (CIF) ang gobyerno para sa Office of the President ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. para sa 2023 — ito kahit nais tinapyasan ng P2.5 bilyon ang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, ang numero unong pamantasan ng bansa.

Ito ang lumalabas matapos isumite ng administrasyong Marcos Jr. ang 2023 National Expenditure Program o proposed budget nito para sa susunod na taon sa Konggreso, bagay na nagkakahalaga ng P5.268 trilyon, mas mataas ng 4.9% kaysa noong nakaraang taon.

Ang surveillance at intelligence expenses ay parehong mga pondo ng gobyerno na ginagamit para sa paniniktik o surveillance.

Ayon sa Commission on Audit, tumutukoy ang confidential expenses sa gastusin para sa "surveillance activities in civilian government agencies that are intended to support the mandate or operations of the agency."

Tumutukoy naman ang intelligence expenses ng presidente sa gastusin sa "intelligence information gathering activities of uniformed and military personnel, and intelligence practitioners that have direct impact to national security."

Nais ilaan ang pondo na ito kahit kulang ng 91,000 classrooms sa buong Pilipinas sa pagsisimula ng face-to-face classes kanina, ayon sa Department of Education.

'Maraming pwedeng gastusan kaysa riyan'

Ang proposed na CIF para sa taong 2023 ay kapareho ng kay dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte nitong mga nagdaang taon, bagay na dati nang nababatikos ng mga kritiko ng administrasyon dahil sa mas marami pa raw mas mahalagang bagay dito.

"Sa panahon ng krisis at baon sa utang ang gobyerno, hindi ba dapat mas ilaan sa serbisyo ang pondo kesa sa dambuhalang intelligence at confidential funds?" wika ni Renato Reyes Jr., secretary general ng Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) sa panayam ng Philstar.com.

"[E]dukasyon at kalusugan ang dapat prayoridad. agrikultura din."

Ikinasakit ng ulo rin ni House Deputy Minority Leader at ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro ang hakbang na ito nina Marcos Jr., lalo na't kalakip din ng 2023 budget ang P2.5 bilyong budget cut sa UP system at P893 milyon sa UP-Philippine General Hospital. 

Aniya, ipinakikita raw ng 2023 budget na "hindi prayoridad" ni Bongbong ang edukasyong lumilinang ng kritikal na pag-iisip.

"The Education sector will only receive P852.8 billion covering DepEd, SUCs, CHED, and TESDA way below the United Nations suggested 6% of the Gross National Product (GDP) allocation for education even if we use 2021 figures. The supposed budget for education should be at least  P1.3 trillion and not the measly P853 billion," dagdag ni Castro.

"The new administration also does not prioritize the health of the nation even if we are still in the midst of the Covid pandemic. UP-PGH is at the front lines of this battle against this virus and instead of increasing its budget it was reduced, how tragically ironic can you get?"

Makakuha lang din daw ang health sector ng P296.3 bilyon ayon sa datos ng Department of Budget and Management, habang naglalakihan ang pondo ng iba pang ahensya at programa gaya ng Department of Public Works and Highways (P718.4 bilyon) para sa banner programs nito.

Nilakihan din ang budget ng nababatikos na National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict sa ilalim ng Local Government  Units-Local Government Support Fund, maliban para sa mga "itinatago" sa ibang departamento at budget items. 

"Also add to this the P4.5 billion confidential and intelligence funds and you have a national budget riddled with mispriorities," dagdag pa ni Castro.

"In the end it is the Filipino people who will suffer with the misprioritization of this administration so the national budget must be carefully be scrutinized and not railroaded." — James Relativo

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ACT TEACHERS PARTY-LIST

BAGONG ALYANSANG MAKABAYAN

BONGBONG MARCOS

NATIONAL EXPENDITURE PROGRAM

PHILIPPINE GENERAL HOSPITAL

PROPOSED BUDGET

UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

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