Senate vows to restore DepEd classroom budget

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has vowed to restore part of the proposed 2019 budget of the Department of Education (DepEd) for the construction of classrooms that was slashed by Malacañang.

During the hearing of the Senate committee on finance on the proposed P528.7-billion budget of DepEd yesterday, it was noted that out of the 47,000 new classrooms for next year, the National Expenditure Program submitted by Malacañang to Congress cut this to 4,100.

A total of P105.46 billion was proposed by the DepEd for the construction and repair of classrooms, technical-vocational laboratories, seats and upgrade of on-grid school sites systems, but Malacañang approved only P34.7 billion.

The Department of Budget (DBM) explained that the reduction was a result of the shift from obligation-based to cash-based budgeting.

According to the DBM, the DepEd recorded a very low disbursement rate last year, which was why it decided to slash the proposed funds for capital outlay of the agency.

The DepEd disputed the claims of the DBM, saying the utilization of funds, since the assumption of Education Secretary Leonor Briones, has improved from 84 percent in 2016 to 90 percent in 2017 and 97 percent this year.

DepEd also noted that the funds were released by the DBM only in July so the implementation of the projects started late.

Briones said the annual classroom requirement of the DepEd is 10,000 and they are capable of completing all 47,000 units for 2019 if their original budget is granted to them.

Sen. Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, chairman of the Senate finance subcommittee, said the chamber would do its best to bring the 4,100 classrooms to at least 10,000 as long as there is assurance that this would be completed on time.

For her part, committee on finance chair Sen. Loren Legarda said 4,100 classrooms are unacceptable and vowed to find funding to augment the budget of the DepEd for this purpose.

Legarda said P55 billion could be realigned to the DepEd for the construction of classrooms, referring to the amount of reported pork barrel-like insertions made by the House of Representatives in its version of the 2019 general appropriations bill.

Displacement of health workers

Meanwhile, the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) yesterday denounced the reduction of the Department of Health (DOH) budget for next year, resulting in the displacement of 15,000 health workers. 

In a statement, AHW president Robert Mendoza said the budget cut is contrary to the DBM’s “advertisement of prioritizing health, education and other services when the budget of these services is being cut.”

Mendoza claimed that the reduction “is a clear manifestation that this administration doesn’t prioritize the right to health of the Filipino people.”  

He added that seven out of 10 Filipinos die without seeing a doctor or health personnel, citing DOH data.

In far-flung areas, Mendoza noted that the situation is worse because there is no healthcare facility and personnel and people travel for hours to bring their patients to regional medical centers.

“What will happen now to the poor patients? Our Filipino citizens will suffer more than what they are experiencing now,” he maintained. 

The statement was issued in reaction to the P8-billion reduction in the DOH budget, after the DBM set it at P71 billion, down from P107.3 billion this year.

The cut will affect the DOH’s Human Resources Deployment program, which field health professionals to unserved and underserved communities across the country. – With Sheila Crisostomo