Bayan to picket pork barrel oral arguments at SC
October 8, 2013 | 12:36pm
MANILA, Philippines - Members of the militant group Bayan on Tuesday held a picket in front of the Supreme Court as the oral arguments on the constitutionality of the pork barrel system began.
Several petitioners through the Social Justice Society and the group of former senatorial candidate Greco Belgica have questioned the legality of the Priority Development Assistance Fund and the president’s Malampaya funds.
“The live audio streaming of the oral arguments is a breakthrough in terms of transparency and accessibility of the SC proceedings. The people are interested in knowing the arguments on why the pork barrel system must not be allowed to continue. The people support the call for the junking of the entire pork barrel system," Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said.
Reyes said that even if there is a new system to disburse pork for the 2014 budget, this does not render moot the questions on the constitutionality of the entire pork barrel system.
"The idea that lawmakers have the right to pick projects and beneficiaries under a system of patronage and corruption is most disturbing and has elicited massive protests the past weeks," Reyes said.
"Even more disturbing and alarming is the power being exercised by the President over billions of pesos of the Malampaya funds and other Special Purpose Funds, as well as the now infamous Disbursement Acceleration Program. The President has usurped the power of Congress when it comes to appropriating funds. Presidential pork has also been vulnerable to misuse as we have already seen," he added.
Bayan said that the High Court should retain the Temporary Restraining Order it issued over the use of PDAF and Malampaya funds.
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