Aquino vetoes several provisions in 2011 GAA
Anchored on his pledge of transparency and accountability in the affairs of government towards the straight and righteous path to meaningful reform, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III has vetoed some of the general and special provisions in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of the fiscal year 2011.
After signing into law Republic Act (R.A.) No. 10147 on Monday, President Aquino reassured the Filipino people his commitment in fulfilling his promise to improve their lives, especially the poor and marginalized sector of society who urgently need a helping hand through quality education, public health, social protection, and social justice as he vetoed several provisions in the 2011 GAA for contravening the provisions of the Constitution and those of applicable laws, rules and regulations.
The 2011 GAA provisions vetoed by the President include: General Provisions, Section 14, “Government Indebtedness and Guaranty,” page 1223 for preventing the government from taking advantage of favorable market conditions; General Provisions, Section 71, “Release of Lump-sum Appropriations,” page 1233, which requires legislative consultation in the release and implementation of all lump-sum appropriations in the GAA; Special Provision No. 3, “Implementation of Farm-to-Market Road Projects,” page 31 under Department of Agriculture (DA)-Office of the Secretary (OSEC) to give the Department of Agriculture (DA) enough latitude and discretion in the execution of Farm-to-Market Road projects, to which it is ultimately accountable for; Special Provision No. 3, “Conditional Cash Transfer Program,” page 789 under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-OSEC; the second paragraph of Department of Education (Deped)-OSEC, Special Provision No. 16, “Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education”, page 65; DSWD-OSEC, Special Provision No. 2, “The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program,” page 788; to give fair priority to the poorest households in the municipalities no matter where they are situated pursuant to the program’s core mandate;
President Aquino also placed serious attention to a number of inappropriate provisions and provisos included in this general appropriations law noting that said provisions and provisos should not have found their way in the GAA, and should have been covered by separate substantive laws.
Such provisions were Item (e) of General Provisions, Section 43, “Authorized Deductions,” page 1228; two provisos under DSWD-OSEC, Special Provision No. 1, “Proceeds from Sale of the Welfareville Property,” page 788; Other Executive Offices (OEOs)–Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Special Provision No. 2, “Hazard Duty Pay”, page 899; Budgetary Support to Government Corporations (BSGC), Special Provision No. 7, “DAP Training Program,” page 974; Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), Special Provision No. 1, “Use of Fund”, page 1011; Unprogrammed Fund, Special Provision No. 5, “Share of the City of Baguio in the Gross Income Taxes Paid by All Locators Doing Business at the Loakan Economic Zone,” page 1015; The last provision under Budgets of Department of Energy-Attached Corporations–National Power Corporation (NPC), Special Provision No. 1, “Budget Flexibility,” page 1217; and the Unprogrammed Fund, Special Provision No 8, “Payment of Total Administrative Disability Pension,” page 1015.
The Chief Executive expressed optimism that the Reformed Budget for FY 2011 will truly usher in a bright new beginning in the governance of the nation.
“This is but a fitting start for our Platform of Change, our Social Contract with the People that became our Administration’s commitment with the People on June 30, 2010,” the President stressed.
“We also ensure a space for honest investors and businessmen to enter into fair, mutually beneficial and productive partnerships with government to build infrastructures and undertake other economic activities that generate more employment,” he said.
President Aquino also expressed gratitude to the members of the 15th Congress for their conscientious choice to adopt a national budget that enshrines transparency and accountability establishing a spending program that is unabashedly biased for the poor.
“I offer my profound thanks to the men and women of the 15th Congress, especially the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance, for responding to my call for genuine governance reform and urgency in responding to the needs of our poor countrymen.” the President said. (PCOO)
Talks with MILF to resume next month—Leonen
Hoping that the Malaysian government would act to address the facilitator dispute, government negotiators on Tuesday expressed optimism that peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will resume next month.
Atty. Marvic Leonen, chair of the government panel for the peace talks with the MILF, said the third-party facilitator issue needs to be resolved first and they are confident that Malaysia would address the concerns of both sides.
"We still remain optimistic that talks with the MILF will resume in January. We hope that the MILF can share that optimism," Leonen said in a statement.
The government had asked the Malaysian government to replace Datuk Othman bin Abd’ Razak as third-party facilitator because of his alleged pro-MILF bias.
“A politically negotiated settlement is needed at the soonest possible time so that the energies of all can be channeled to addressing justice, lasting peace, sustainable development and prosperity for all peoples in Mindanao,’ he continued.
He noted that administrative and security concerns are ongoing and they are prepared to discuss these with MILF counterparts and vow to continue the series of consultations with relevant sectors particularly the issues raised by the Moro rebels.
“We think that this is what negotiating in good faith means. It is also the better part of prudence since issues taken out of context do contribute to environments which can only foster more violence. We invite all concerned to help us address the problems in the spirit of finding lasting solutions to a complex problem,” he added.
Meanwhile, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Secretary Teresita “Ging” Quintos-Deles said the early signing of the 2011 national budget by President Benigno S. Aquino III will definitely fuel the administration’s reforms and expedite promotion of the peace agenda.
In a statement, Deles said the approved budget of P235 million for the Office of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) will be used for peace negotiations and parallel efforts, such as humanitarian, rehabilitation and development programs.
Part of the budget, she said, will be used to implement PAMANA (Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan), the government’s flagship program to help empower internally displaced persons (IDPs) and other families living in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao. (PCOO)
