Wednesday, November 28, 2007 Senate to hold marathon budget hearings
THE Senate is set to hold marathon hearings on the proposed budget for 2008 for two weeks in order to make sure that the budget will be passed before the year ends.
Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. said Tuesday senators agreed to meet in the morning and afternoon to finish the 2008 budget before the Senate goes on a Christmas break.
Villar said the P1.227-trillion proposed budget would not be touched but there would only be some amendments.
In his sponsorship speech, Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, chairman of the committee on finance, said the Senate also restored P12.1 billion of the P17.8 billion cut in debt service, among others, in the House of Representatives' version of the P1.227-trillion proposed 2008 budget, making the Senate version more attuned to Malacañang's original proposal.
Enrile cited the need to restore "all the cuts made by the House" as the executive branch was more aware of the people's needs.
Aside from the slash in debt payments, the House also realigned P30.1 billion worth of key appropriations that Malacañang made in the original budget proposal, redirecting the amount to basic services like education, health, agriculture, public safety, and the environment.
In the Senate version, most of the allocations have been reverted back to the President's budget but the Upper Chamber provided P2 billion more for the repair of school buildings and to cover the 2008 backlog for classrooms (P760 million), school seats (P420 million), and the hiring of new teachers (P330 million).
The Upper Chamber further introduced changes in the special and general provisions of the budget.
For his part, Senator Edgardo Angara said budget must focus on the country's future through human capital investment.
This is the main thrust of the budget presented by Angara in the plenary Tuesday.
Angara, who chairs the Senate Subcommittee C on Finance, highlighted the efforts of the subcommittee to redirect public spending towards education and Research and Development (R&D).
Describing his subcommittee's budget as a "budget for a competitive Filipino," Angara said the proposed budget "will prioritize spending in
R&D, which has the highest economic return of all economic activities."
"These education and R&D efforts should be focused on the three areas, which the Congressional Commission on Science, Technology and Engineering (COMSTE) has identified as the great enablers of the Philippine economy, namely (1) electronics and telecommunications, (2) agriculture and food sciences; and (3) health sciences," he said.
As such, Angara has recommended the allocation of more funds to the scholarship program of the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) to deserving students, and has rationalized existing Ched scholarship programs -- from over 20 different programs to just three major headings, namely: State Scholarship; Special Study Grant; and Study Loans.
"There is a critical need for the Philippines to develop more scientists and engineers, as these professionals will lead our technological capacity for innovation, which will ultimately decide whether our country develops or not," Angara pointed out.
In this light, Angara has channeled funds for the creation of one Philippine Science High School (PSHS) in every region, with the goal of having one PSHS per region in the next three years.
The senator has also supported the creation of a research consortium of State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in the Cordillera Administrative Region, which shall address the unique needs of this "rich, historical, cultural but impoverished region."
In particular, the research consortium shall focus on conserving the rice terraces, and developing upland agriculture, indigenous industries, and a joint program on fish breeding.
Angara described these education programs as "food for the Filipino's mind," and has placed these projects hand in hand with providing "food for the Filipino's stomach."
"Food, nutrition, and agriculture are critical to our population of 88 million, which will grow to 100 million in three years. They will require not just adequate food but adequate nutrition," he said.
Hence, Angara emphasized public spending in water conservation, coastal and marine resources protection, and watershed and forest conservation, which will contribute to food security. (CPB/Sunnex)
