DBM warns vs reenacted budget amid corruption tag

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) cautioned against the possible reenactment of the 2025 budget, stressing that it is better to delay its passage for proper scrutiny than to adopt a version already tagged by some as the "most corrupt."

- By MARCO LUIS BEECH

Speaking to reporters, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said the department's legal team is drafting guidelines in case the current year's national budget is reenacted.

"I hope it doesn't happen because if the 2025 budget is reenacted, some are already calling it the most corrupt budget. So why reenact it? Let's not do this. Let's just study it carefully. It's OK if it takes time; they want everything to be open and transparent now anyway," she said.

Pangandaman said she expects the bicameral conference committee deliberations on the 2026 budget to be streamed live, noting that the DBM supports making the process open to the public.

Primarily allocated for infrastructure projects, over P142 billion was reportedly inserted into the 2025 national budget during bicameral deliberations in late 2024.

Asked what could trigger a reenacted budget, Pangandaman said, "When it's far from the National Expenditure Program (NEP), when the budget that Congress passes is too far from what the President originally submitted."

In December, President Marcos vetoed P194 billion from the P6.326-trillion national budget for 2025, saying the items did not reflect the administration's core priorities. Among those vetoed were more than 170 infrastructure projects and 15 unprogrammed allocations.

"The reason for the veto is that significant changes were made, the bicameral report differed from what we originally submitted. If the changes were only minor, there would be no need to veto; the President would simply sign it," she said.

The NEP, also known as the President's budget, will be published on the DBM website upon submission to Congress, while budget deliberations will be open to the public via Zoom and through the House and Senate websites.

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