Government to implement performance-based system
of giving bonuses to workers – DBM Secretary Abad
In order to prod government workers and
institutions to perform their respective mandates above par, the administration
of President Benigno S. Aquino III will implement a performance-based system of
bonuses that will be included in the 2013 General Appropriations Act, Budget
Secretary Florencio Abad said on Tuesday.
In a press briefing at Malacañang, Abad said
this “innovation” of awarding bonuses to deserving employees and institutions
is in line with President Aquino’s directive to harmonize all performance-based
management systems in government.
“…we hope to strengthen also the accountability
of public institutions and public servants to perform their mandates and,
therefore, we continue to deepen performance budgeting and harmonize all
performance-based management systems in government,” Abad said.
He added that the additional bonus is different
from the usual productivity enhancement incentive given to government workers
and institutions every year.
“But one innovation that we are going to
introduce next year is a system of performance-based bonuses which can range
from 5,000 to 35,000 pesos per employee on top of the productivity enhancement
incentive of about 5,000 that they will be receiving,” Abad said.
He said that more details on the incentive
program will be given at a later date. (rck)
Department of Budget and Management announces
proposed 2013 budget
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM)
has announced the completion in terms of preparation of the proposed
P2.006-trillion ‘Empowerment Budget’ under the National Expenditure Program
(NEP) for fiscal year 2013 to support the Aquino government’s unyielding
efforts to fulfill its commitment to achieve poverty reduction and sustainable
economic development.
In a press briefing in Malacanang on Tuesday,
Budget Secretary Florencio ‘Butch’ Abad said that the proposed 2013 national
budget was crafted in consideration of five key principles to ensure that the
Aquino administration’s priority program targets will be attained.
“This budget was crafted guided by five
principles, the first one is the President’s Greater and Deeper commitment to
the Aquino Social Contract, the second is Accelerated Completion of Priority
Program Targets, third Stronger Government Accountability to Perform, fourth is
Transparency for Faster Budget Execution and Clearer Results, and last but not
the least is Greater Stakeholder Participation in Preparation and Execution,”
Abad said.
“We want this budget to accelerate the
completion of priority program target so, towards this end we have designated
the Department of Public Works and Highways as the principal infrastructure
agency, meaning all construction activities will now be undertaken… the design,
costing, the procurement or the bidding as well as the supervision by the DPWH
so that the other agencies can concentrate on their core mandates,” he added.
The proposed 2013 NEP, Abad further noted, will
be anchored on the theme “Atas ng Bayan” which aims to deliver what the people,
especially the underprivileged sector, has been asking for.
“I will present to you the budget that we will
submit on July 24 to Congress… the day after the President delivers his SONA,
ang tema po ng budget for next year [ay] ‘Atas ng Bayan’. Last year our
definition of ‘Paggugol ng Matuwid’ was spending that had direct, immediate and
substantial impact to the people,” Abad said.
“This year we define ‘Paggugol ng Matuwid as
something that the people, especially the poor had been asking for or in short
‘Atas ng Taumbayan’.. we’ll be calling it an empowerment budget because every
government peso that is spent in this budget is meant to benefit the people especially
the poor and in that way we feel that we are empowering them,” he stressed.
In a separate statement, the DBM chief
underscored the people’s instructions to President Benigno S. Aquino III.
“Malinaw po ang Atas ng Taumbayan kay Pangulong
Aquino: Igugol nang matuwid and bawat piso sa kaban ng bayan nang may direktang
pakinabang sa kanila”, Abad noted.
“With this, the Aquino administration designed
the 2013 expenditure plan as an Empowerment Budget: a budget that seeks to
unshackle the poor from poverty and invest in their capabilities to participate
meaningfully in the economy. It is also a Budget that deepens reform by
enabling citizens to participate in governance and to hold government
accountable to them,” he said. (jcl/2:03 p.m.)
Abad bares 10.5 percent increase in proposed
National Expenditure Program for fiscal year 2013
Budget and Management Secretary Florencio
“Butch” Abad bared a 10.5 per cent increase in the proposed National
Expenditure Program for the fiscal year 2013 which prioritizes funding for key
programs that decisively address poverty, foster inclusive economic growth and
ultimately empower the people, especially the poor.
In a press release issued by the Department of
Budget and Management (DBM) following his briefing with the members of the
media in Malacanang on Tuesday, Secretary Abad said that the greatest share or
34.8 percent of the proposed P2.006-trillion proposed budget, equivalent to
P698.4 billion pesos, has been earmarked for Social Services that will support
the reduction of poverty to 16.6 percent by the year 2016. This allocation is
13.9 percent higher than the sector’s P613.4 billion budget in 2012.
The economic manager said that the allotment
will support the closing of resource gaps in basic education by next year; the
coverage of 5.2 million poor households under the National Health Insurance
Program; the construction of at least 103,000 affordable housing units for
informal settlers in danger zones for soldiers, policemen and other uniformed
personnel, among others; and the coverage of 3.8 million indigent households
under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
The budget also prioritizes Economic Services
which will bolster the country’s bid to achieve a gross domestic product (GDP)
growth of six to seven percent and to create more jobs and livelihood
opportunities for the Filipino people.
With a proposed 25.5 percent or P510.9 billion
share from next year’s budget pie, the sectoral allocation increased by 16.4
percent from the P439.0 billion in 2012.
The allocation will support the rehabilitation
and concreting of all primary roads by 2014 and all secondary roads and bridges
by the year 2016; the production of 20 million metric tons of palay to attain
rice sufficiency by next year; the attainment of 5.53 million tourist arrivals
by 2013 and ten million by 2016; and the distribution of 360,000 hectares of
lands under the agrarian reform by 2013. (jcl/2:25 p.m.)
