MANILA, Philippines - Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II is set to defend today the P9.5-billion budget of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for 2014, which has been questioned by the political opposition in connection with the P1-billion fund allocated for climate change and the relocation of informal settlers.
Senate finance committee chairman Sen. Francis Escudero has set the hearing at 9 a.m. today at the Recto and J.P. Laurel rooms at the Senate at the GSIS building in Pasay City.
The DILG has under its wing the Bureau of Fire Protection with P8.725-billion budget for 2014, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology with a budget of P6.270 billion, Local Government Academy (P149.8 million), National Police Commission (P1.422 billion), Philippine National Police (P71.945 billion), and the Philippine Public Safety College (P1.5 billion).
Under the special provisions of the DILG, a P9.5-billion budget was allocated to the Office of the Secretary, about P76 million was appropriated for 2014 to enhance the local government unit capacity on climate change adaptation and disaster risk management framework.
As safeguards, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has mandated the Office of the DILG Secretary to submit either in printed form or any form of electronic document a detailed annual work plan prior to the commencement of the project and quarterly reports on financial and physical accomplishments of the project.
The committee on appropriations and Senate committee on finance should be furnished a copy of the periodic reports of the agency, which are also mandated to be published in the DILG official website.
The DILG secretary is also barred from realigning the P1.547 billion set aside for the Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan Program (Pamana), which shall be used exclusively to implement the projects in conflict-affected areas already identified by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).
“In no case shall said the amount be used for any other purposes. Implementation of this provision shall be subject to guidelines to be jointly issued by the OPAPP, DILG and DBM,†the DBM said.
For the relocation of informal settler families residing in danger areas within Metro Manila, the Office of the DILG secretary gets P1.244 billion for the housing program for the squatters.
Based on the National Expenditure Program prepared by the DBM, P700 million will be used for the construction of medium-rise buildings while P544.6 million is being set aside as an interim shelter fund for 40,000 target families.
Roxas also has at his disposal P572.73 million for the Potable Water Supply Project to fund waterless municipalities and barangays.
About P500 million is also allocated in 2014 for the so-called performance-based challenge fund that would subsidize qualified local government units under the Local Governance Performance Management Program for the implementation of priority projects to support the accomplishment of the millennium development goals.
It also aims to ensure the implementation of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2009 and the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction Management Act of 2010.
In particular, the subsidy shall be used for rehabilitation and maintenance of roads leading to tourism sites and production zones to boost local economic development or promote peace and order in the area.