Contact Details

Rm. N-411, House of Representatives, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
+63 2 931 5497, +63 2 931 5001 local 7370

Press Statements
Rep. Edcel C. Lagman
Mobile No. 0916-6406737 / 0918-9120137
29 September 2011
 
         
         
          It is not accurate for Budget Secretary Florencio Abad to claim in today’s Malacañang press briefing that the recent credit upgrades of the Philippines constitute the “most objective assessment” of how prudent and responsible the national budget is formulated.
 
          The import of the budget is only one of the many bases and variables used by credit rating agencies to determine a country’s capacity to pay its debts.
 
          It is also inaccurate to equate the credit upgrades of the Philippines to a recommendation for foreign investors to locate in the country because no less than the President himself has admitted that the upgrade of the Philippines is limited to a “non-investment grade”.
 
          Moreover, it should be understood that an upgrade is the result of cumulative positive economic development and reforms over a period of time, not only on the basis of an overnight achievement.
 
          Rating agencies admit that they only give upgrades after years of fiscal improvement, and not a few months of gains like savings which are mostly contrived.

Press Statements
Rep. Edcel C. Lagman
Tel No. 218-8619
Mobile No. 0916-6406741 / 0918-9120137
24 September 2011
 
          The excess fat in the 2012 appropriations for Public Private Partnership (PPP), which have ballooned to 76.8% over the 2011 level, must be excised to augment the budget for infrastructure and State Universities and Colleges (SUCs).
         
This was the strong message which Minority Leader and Albay Representative Edcel C. Lagman told the select committee tasked with effecting amendments to the 2012 General Appropriations Bill (GAB).
         
          The allocation of P22.1 billion in 2012 as government counterpart funds for PPP projects is inordinately excessive considering the unutilized balance of P12,425,500,000.00 this year which is available for disbursement next year.
 
Due to the anemic implementation of PPP projects for the past 15 months where no project has been bid out, the appropriations in 2011 in the total amount of P12.5-B for the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Agriculture (DA) has barely been used.
 
The 2011 outlay for DOTC in the amount of P5.0-B remains intact, while DPWH utilized only P72-M for road right-of-way out of its total budget of P5.0-B and only the amount of P2.5-M was released to DA, of which only less than P500,000.00 has been obligated, out of its allocation of P2.5-B.
 
DOTC, DPWH and DA has a combined unutilized balance of P12,425,500,000.00 which should be carried over for next year.
 
Consequently, the PPP budget for 2012 even if maintained at P22.1-B is still effectively overstated by P12.425-B corresponding to the unutilized balance in 2011.
 
This excess of P12.425-B must be realigned to augment the appropriations for infrastructure and State Universities and Colleges (SUCs).
 
It is welcomed that the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Health (DOH) have been added as beneficiaries of PPP with outlays of P5.0-B and P3.0-B respectively.

Press Release
Rep. Edcel C. Lagman
Tel No. 218-8619
Mobile No. 0916-6406741 / 0918-9120137
23 September 2011
 
 
          Despite the Supreme Court’s restraining the President from appointing Officers-in-Charge (OICs) in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), there will be no void or vacancies in the positions of ARMM governor, vice governor and members of the regional assembly whose terms of office expire on 30 September 2011.
 
          This was declared by Minority Leader and Albay Representative Edcel C. Lagman, the principal petitioner in the Supreme Court who is challenging the constitutionality of R.A. No. 10153 which cancelled the 08 August 2011 ARMM election and authorized the President to appoint OICs.
 
          Lagman said that existing laws on ARMM, particularly R.A. No. 9054 or the Expanded Organic Act of 2001, authorizes the hold-over of incumbents until their successors are duly elected and qualified.
 
Consequently, the implementation of the hold-over proviso in ARMM is valid, legal and constitutional according to Lagman.
 
Lagman clarified that what the Supreme Court prohibited in Osmena vs. COMELEC is the hold-over of elected officials whose terms of office are fixed by the Constitution like the President, Vice President, Senators, Representatives and local elective officials from governor to municipal councilor.
 
The Minority Leader underscored that the terms of office of ARMM regional officials are fixed by the Organic Act of 1989, and not by the Constitution because at the time the 1987 Constitution was ratified there was no ARMM yet and the ARMM was only later established by Congress pursuant to the mandate of the Constitution which gave the Congress the full authority to set up the basic structure of the ARMM government including the terms of office of its principal regional officials.
 
Moreover, the ARMM officials do not fall under the traditional concept of “local officials” since they are regional officials of higher status enjoying more autonomy, Lagman added.
 
Lagman also said that the President’s power to appoint is limited to appointive officials and does not extend to the filing up of elective positions like those of the regional officials of ARMM which under the Constitution should be “elective and representative of the constituent political units”, thus negating the appointment of OICs.

Press Release
  • Rep. Edcel C. Lagman
  • 22 September 2011
  • Mobile Nos. 0916-6406741 / 09189120137

  

          Revert the funds for unfilled positions to the Judiciary, Congress and Constitutional Commissions but rein its utilization by special provisions.

          

          House Minority Leader and Albay Representative Edcel C. Lagman proposed this compromise solution to diffuse the looming confrontation among the Supreme Court, the Presidency and the Congress on Malacañang’s inclusion in the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund (MPBF) of the appropriations for unfilled positions which were traditionally components of the respective Personal Service (PS) budgets of the co-equal departments and constitutional bodies which enjoy fiscal autonomy.

 

           In a letter dated 20 September 2011 to Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, concurrent Chair of the Appropriation Committee and the small committee tasked with effecting amendments to HB No. 5023 or the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), Lagman proposed that the “funds for unfilled positions in the Judiciary, Congress and Constitutional Commissions shall be reverted to the respective PS outlays of the subject agencies”, but adopting “special provisions to assure transparency, proper utilization and non-diversion of funds.”

 

           If the Lagman proposed amendment is approved, the subject funds will be regularly and automatically released but subject to special provisions.

 

           The Minority Leader proposed the following special provisions:

           1.  Funds allocated for unfilled positions shall be utilized exclusively for operationalizing unfilled positions;

           2.  The earmarked funds cannot be used to augment Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE), purchase of equipment and/or financing operations; and

           3.  Any savings at the end of the fiscal year in the appropriations for unfilled positions shall be carried over in its entirety to the following year’s agency budget and cannot be realigned to support other activities or expense items.

 

            In the initial meeting of the small committee on 21 September 2011, Rep. Abaya undertook to seriously consider Lagman’s proposal.