President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s contingent fund value P13 billion is usually a supply of support for rice retailers who’re anticipated to endure losses as a result of obligatory worth ceiling Malacañang has imposed on rice, opposition lawmaker Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman mentioned on Wednesday.
In an announcement, Lagman additionally adverted to the switch of funds from the President’s contingent fund allocation to the Office of the Vice President in 2022.
“The President’s contingent fund of P13-B in 2023 can be the source of the requisite assistance to rice retailers as subsidy to them in order to foreclose their expected losses in selling their inventories, which they procured at levels higher than the price cap imposed under Executive Order No. 39,” Lagman mentioned.
Lagman mentioned the contingent fund was meant “to respond to unforeseen urgent and critical circumstances during the fiscal year, and it is not limited to specific occurrences and obligations.”
“If the contingent fund can be utilized to grant ‘confidential funds’ to the Office of the Vice President in 2022 when the said office did not have any appropriated secret funds, with more reason the President’s contingent fund can be used to bail out small rice retailers,” Lagman mentioned.
Lagman issued the assertion after he was requested concerning the propriety of Malacañang transferring P125 million of its 2022 contingent fund to the OVP. The quantity was reported to have been disbursed as confidential funds by the workplace.
The Office of the Executive Secretary mentioned such augmentation was approved by the President as supplied underneath the 2022 nationwide finances regulation.
EO 39 set the value of standard milled rice at P41 per kilo, whereas that of well-milled rice has been pegged at P45 per kilo amid rising rice costs because of growing costs of imported rice.
Senate finance panel chairperson Sonny Angara, for his half, mentioned the switch of the funds was throughout the jurisdiction of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
“According to the DBM, this (P125 million confidential fund) was a release from the contingent fund [of the President in the 2022 budget. [It would be] best to consult them on the details of this release,” Angara mentioned in a textual content message to GMA News Online.
Last Monday, Vice President Duterte admitted that her workplace had requested confidential funds in August 2022 and acquired the allocations in December of that 12 months.
“The amount is correct and that is correct, we requested confidential funds to the Office of the President as early as August 2022 and we were only granted the confidential funds in December 2022,” Duterte mentioned in the course of the Senate Committee on Finance listening to on the proposed P2.385-billion finances of the OVP for 2024.
Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III mentioned there was a authorized difficulty as regards the augmentation because the General Appropriations Act for 2022 did not privide the OVP with confidential funds.
“We requested it from the Office of the President and it was granted through the Department of Budget and Management. I think the Department of Budget and Management can better answer the question on the transfer of funds from their source to the Office of the Vice President,” Duterte mentioned. —NB, GMA Integrated News
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
