The executive branch is reinforcing its line of defense against parliamentary pork barrel practices, warning that line-item scrutiny will eliminate unbacked project allocations before the national budget is enacted.
Malacañang maintained on Tuesday that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will not allow any unnecessary and unsupported appropriation amid reports of insertions in the proposed 2027 national budget, reiterating the administration’s anti-corruption policy.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said during a Malacañang press briefing that while the President will not interfere in congressional budget deliberations, the proposed General Appropriations Act for 2027 will undergo rigorous line-item review by the Office of the President and the cabinet economic team before receiving presidential assent.
Castro emphasized that the 2027 budget remains under active deliberation in the House of Representatives and has not reached final form.
Castro also said that before the spending bill reaches the executive desk, it must complete Senate deliberations and pass through the bicameral conference committee.
Addressing legislative adjustments, Castro urged lawmakers to safeguard the administration’s priority programs from budget cuts that could stall infrastructure timelines, while assuring the public that public funds will reach targeted beneficiaries rather than corrupt officials.
“Ang utos ng Pangulo: Ang pondo ng bayan ay hindi dapat inaabuso. Ang pondo ng bayan ay dapat sa taumbayan, hindi sa bulsa ninuman (The President’s directive: Public funds must not be abused. Public funds belong to the people—not in anyone’s pocket),” Castro said.
“Ang proyekto na nakasaad sa proposed budget, huwag ng bawasan dahil matitigil o magiging sanhi ito para madelay ang mga proyektong dapat na tapusin sa administrasyon ni Pangulong Marcos Jr. (The projects included in the proposed budget should be untouched, without any cuts, because this could delay the completion of projects that the administration of President Marcos Jr. intended to be finished within his term),” Castro also said.
The executive stance follows reports indicating that an estimated P180 billion to P190 billion in project allocations within the proposed 2027 budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) lack proper documentation and technical specification details.