Ping: House budget insertions 'much bigger' than Senate's

After saying that “almost all” 24 senators of the 19th Congress had insertions in the 2025 national budget amounting to over P100 billion, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson clarified yesterday that members of the House of Representatives had even bigger entries.

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As senators began to push back against criticisms on insertions, Lacson clarified that he was not singling out the Senate when he flagged budget changes for public works — the biggest of which was P10 billion for one senator alone.

He noted that insertions are not necessarily unlawful, but expressed suspicion over the P5 billion to P9 billion supposedly received by each lawmaker.

Lacson, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, said House insertions “were much bigger and the list of names is much longer” and ran several pages in alphabetical order, compared to the 24 names in the Senate.

“It’s like a roll call,” Lacson told radio dzBB, referring to the list of over 300 lawmakers read by the House Secretary General to check for quorum during sessions.

He confirmed that the amendments involved infrastructure projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).