Nat’l budget reform initiative now in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - The budget reform initiative of the Aquino administration dubbed as Bottom-up Budgeting  has gained support from various local government units and civil society organizations during a two-day campaign in Cebu.

Close to 500 local officials and leaders of CSOs signed a petition in support of BUB during the orientation for members of the Local Poverty Reduction Action Teams held at the Cebu Provincial Capitol on Monday and Tuesday.

The organizers said BUB is aimed to institutionalize grassroots participation in the budget planning process.  

Organized by the Department of Interior and Local Government, the participants who composed the LPRATs are representatives from basic sector, CSO and the 53 LGUs including the highly-urbanized cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.

Also launched during the event was the “Milyong Mga Pirma Alang sa Bottom-up Budgeting” by the Cebu-based network of basic sector organization of Kilos Mamamayan which was highlighted by the symbolic signing of the petition.

The BUB was introduced in 2011 by the late DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo. DILG Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas III continued the implementation of this anti-poverty projects in coordination with various national government agencies from which the P20.1 billion funding for 1,226 LGUs nationwide this year come from.

BUB regional coordinator Jovelito Cadungog said each LGU will get at least P15 million and a maximum of P50 million depending on the number of the poor based on the National Housing Targeting System of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

He said the system is also the basis of the distribution of the conditional cash transfer.

Only Cebu City will get the maximum amount of P50 million followed by Mandaue City in the amount of P33 million while the rest will get at least the minimum budget cap determined by the Department of Budget and Management, he sid.

DILG provincial director Jerome Gonzales said the two-day orientation paved the way for an open exchange of ideas regarding the policies and process governing the management and implementation of BUB and the various projects of participating national government agencies.

KM national secretary Marco Polo Ferrer said their group is determined to gather a million signatures which will be used “as proof of definitive support of the people for the program.”

“We encourage a broader citizen participation in the program but first, we must take action to ensure that this reform measure will be sustained beyond the Aquino administration,” he said.

He urged the CSOs in Cebu to join Kilos Mamamayan in asserting various proposals for areas for improvements through BUB. — (FREEMAN)