LAWMAKERS in the Philippine Senate will remiss their constitutional duty if they will not investigate the P 10-B pork barrel scam involving six administration and opposition senators, and at least 28 representatives from the House of Representatives.
In a statement, the fisherfolk alliance Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) said the Philippine Senate under the presidency of Liberal Party (LP) stalwart and Senate President Franklin Drilon has no reason to reject the proposed investigation of P10-B pork barrel fund allegedly lost to corruption and syndicated appropriations of funds.
“Why back track from unearthing the evil known as pork barrel? Senate President Drilon should pursue the investigation and have himself subject too to investigation since there were reports in the past that he also used his own pork to finance an eco-tourism project in Iloilo City known as Esplanade,” said Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France.
According to initial reports gathered by Pamalakaya, Senate President Drilon spent portions of his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) two years ago for the eco-tourism project in the city that displaced fishing families along Iloilo River.
“Senate President Drilon should be obliged to conduct a senate inquiry on the P 10-B pork barrel scam. He should stop acting like a protector of those pinpointed as culprits in the grand robbery of public funds representing hard-earned money by Filipino workers and taxpayers,” the Pamalakaya official said.
Likewise, the group appealed to Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero to pursue the investigation, being the chair of the Senate Committee on Finance. Pamalakaya’s France said the budget hearing on the proposed P 2.268 trillion budget for 2014 is proper occasion to bring the matter to public scrutiny and public trial.
“We are talking here of P 10-B pesos in taxpayers’ money. That money is sacred and should go to the general welfare of the Filipino public. Therefore, we hereby task the Office of the Senate President and the chair of the Senate Committee on Finance to lead this august chamber to pursue the investigation, nothing more, nothing less,” said France.
Earlier, Senator Escudero announced that the Senate will not use the hearings on the P2.26-trillion national budget for next year to dig into the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam. He said the priority is the budget and performance and we intend to pass the budget on time.
Meanwhile,activist fisherfolk alliance Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Friday pressed President Benigno Simeon Aquino III to scrap the P 27-B pork barrel budget for 2014 as inscribed in the national budget next year.
Likewise, Pamalakaya asked Malacanang to delete audit free pork barrel items for the Chief Executive under the President Social Funds (PSF).
The group challenged President Aquino to end the Republic of Pork Barrel in the country and scrap these blasphemous, immoral and extremely insensitive “payoffs” of the ruling party to lawmakers and politicians allied with ruling syndicate in Maalcanang,
Pamalakaya said the scrapping of the P 27-B pork barrel fund, including the pork barrel of the President is politically and morally correct and urgent, in lieu of a shocking discovery that some P 10-B pork barrel fund scam that allegedly involved fake or fly-by-night NGOs with the auspices of 5 senators and 23 district representatives over the last decade.
“Aquino can immediately instruct the DBM to delete pork barrel portions in the 2014 budget intended for lawmakers and the Office of the President. It is easy job after all, but the President appears like hellbent in maintaining the corruption driven pork barrel system to buy political loyalty and for his own version of obsession to pork barrel,” the Pamalakaya noted.
The group said on top of the P 10-B pork barrel scam, President Aquino has yet to account his own pork barrel granted to him by his allies in Congress to the tune of P 24-B President Social Funds (PSF) which are free from scrutiny of the Commission on Audit (COA).
“The inclusion of the P 27-B pork barrel in the proposed P 2.268 trillion budget for 2014 is an exchange deal with the allies of President Aquino in both houses of Congress. It is like Mr. Aquino telling the senators and congressmen that you’ll have your pork barrel and I will keep mine and let’s enjoy the day,” the group argued.
Earlier, Pamalakaya dared Malacanang to certify as urgent a proposed bill abolishing the pork barrel of senators and congressmen, including the audit free pork barrel allotted to the Office of the President.
France was referring to House Bill No. 1535 recalling the pork barrel to all lawmakers and President Aquino. HB 1535 was filed last week by militant congressmen belonging to Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, Gabriela, Alliance of Concerned Teachers and Kabataan Partylist— collectively known as the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives.
“Instead of promoting a pork barrel republic in the country, we compel the highest office in the land to certify as urgent HB 1535 to frustrate the large-scale resource grabbing and plunder of taxpayers’ money in aid of legislation. Instead, the pork barrel fund should be re-channeled to basic social services such as housing, education, health and other forms of services beneficial to the people and the taxpaying public,” said Pamalakaya.
The bill authored by progressive lawmakers seeks the abolition not just of the Priority Development Assistance Fund, of which House members gets P70 million each and senators P200 million every year.
Section 3 of the HB 1535 likewise prohibits the president from “allocating, releasing, disbursing or realigning any amount from Special Fund 151, including that which is generally referred to as (the) Malampaya Fund” and from the President’s Social Fund, which is sourced from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation and other revenue-generating agencies.
Fund 151 is a special account maintained by the Department of Budget and Management in which the government’s share of revenues from the Malampaya natural gas project — last estimated to be P115.17 billion — is held.
The Makabayan bloc anti-pork barrel bill states that the government shall ensure that every cent from the public purse is used towards attaining real and comprehensive development, equitable distribution of income and wealth, and a sustained increase in production of goods and services for the benefot of the people, especially the underprivileged — and none for patronage and traditional politics.
The bill was filed amid reports of an alleged scam that duped lawmakers into funding billions of pesos worth of bogus projects through non-existent nongovernmental organizations.
Pamalakaya said Malacanang is also compelled to let COA perform a honest to goodness audit of the P 24-B executive pork barrel utilized by the Office of the President. . The group argued that the Filipino taxpaying public including the urban poor who pay P 3.60 expanded value added tax for every kilo of rice want an audit of the 24 billion peso pork barrel transferred to Aquino’s presidential account in 2012.
Pamalakaya lambasted President Aquino for refusing to heed to the legitimate demands of the people to have presidential pork abolished along with the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of lawmakers following the discovery of P 10-B pork barrel scam by COA.
The group said PSF is one venue where the president and his allies can corrupt public funds since this kind of pork barrel is free from public scrutiny and government audit. In 2010, during the Arroyo administration, the COA found out that some P 1.2 B from PSF was transferred to various NGOs and government agencies and irregularly reflected as donations, making it difficult for COA to establish accountability for the funds.
According to Pamalakaya, the Office of the President’s pork barrel in 2012 include the P2.695-billion in intelligence funds, of which, P666 million was earmarked for “National Security Monitoring including requirements for the Presidential Anti-Organized/Syndicated Crime and Transnational Crime Campaign, as well as P600,000,000 for confidential and intelligence expenses to be released upon approval of the President.
The group said in 2012, the Office of the President also sought P224.68 million budget for travel expenses alone. Pamalakaya said President Aquino exercises discretionary powers on the intelligence funds of the Office of the President, contingent funds, calamity funds and unprogrammed funds. About P 1 billion peso was given to President Aquino for contingent funds.
Pamalakaya said the contingent fund was administered by the Office of the President and used exclusively to fund the requirements of new and/or urgent projects and activities that need to be implemented during the year. This fund may be used to augment the existing appropriations for local and foreign travels of the President, but in no case shall it be used for the purchase of motor vehicles.”
The group said the Office of the President also received P14.2 billion for disaster management use, apart from entry from the calamity fund, which went up to P7.5 billion in 2012 from P5 billion in 2011.
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