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Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Oledan: Anatomy of the pork
By Radzini Oledan
Slice of Life
'PRESIDENT Manuel Roxas was said to have dangled pork barrel funds to congressmen as a way of winning their support for the Bell Trade Act, which gave American corporations equal "rights" with Filipino businessmen in exploiting the country's economic resources.'
It's their pork.
Last week, members of the House of Representatives decided to retain their entire pork barrel and ignore a Palace request to slash the allocation by 40 percent to avert a financial crisis. This means that by fiscal year 2005, each congressman will still receive P70 million in pork barrel funds.
The pork barrel, officially called the Priority Development Assistance Fund or PDAF, has become synonymous to abuse and perceived to be a major source of corruption.
What precisely is the nature of pork barrel funds and how was it used through the years?
Pork barrel funds are commonly associated with congressmen and senators, but it is not only lawmakers who avail themselves of these.
Wikipedia defines pork barrel as "a derogatory term used to describe government spending that is intended to enrich constituents of a politician in return for their political support, either in the form of campaign contributions or votes."
The term "pork barrel" is derived from a practice of pre-American Civil War days in which masters would give their slaves slated pork in barrels. Wrote a U.S. journalist in 1919: "Oftentimes, the eagerness of the slaves would result in a rush upon the pork barrel, in which each would strive to grab as much as possible for himself. Members of Congress, in their rush to get their local appropriation items, behaved so much like Negro slaves rushing to the pork barrel."
In the Philippines, pork barrel funds have been in use at least since the 1930s during the U.S. colonial occupation as part of the spoil system where it is likened to a personal discretionary fund of legislative members belonging to the ruling party.
President Manuel Roxas was said to have dangled pork barrel funds to congressmen as a way of winning their support for the Bell Trade Act, which gave American corporations equal "rights" with Filipino businessmen in exploiting the country's economic resources.
During the martial law period, President Ferdinand Marcos gave generous pork to his party mates to support his political agenda and plan. Over the years, the allocation of pork barrel serves a purpose to win the loyalty of political party members and to gain support for a political agenda. Corruption is thus directly tolerated to secure support especially when election comes.
Since then, it has assumed various names, as the Countrywide Development Fund (CDF) during the time of then President Fidel Ramos. It is presently known as the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).
Legislators would often defend the utilization of the pork barrel to implement public infrastructure projects in their respective areas. It has been an important facet in the campaign kitty of those who are wishing to be reelected the next term around.
The problem though is the lack of mechanism to monitor the implementation and utilization of pork barrel funds. In 1996, the Commission on Audit reported that the extent of overpricing reached more than 200 percent of the market prices and government-set costs.
How can anyone ever justify the use of pork barrel? When infrastructure projects are implemented with over half of its cost going into the pockets of few people as payment of 'standard operating procedures' or kickbacks from the transaction, then something had to be done.
It's the kind of pork, which is doubly dangerous not only to the health but on the moral fiber of society.
Scrap it, why not?
(November 23, 2004 issue)
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