‘Who would not want it to be realigned [to DND]?’ said DND chief Gilberto Teodoro in Filipino during the sidelines of the Thursday luncheon meeting organized by the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) when asked about the realignment prospects. However, Teodoro noted that the realignment prospect of the DPWH budget is just a ‘one-off’ thing, and the DND needs to sustain its funding ‘year by year.’
‘This is not just the solution because we need to spend a big amount year-by-year for defense, especially with the challenges we are facing right now,’ he said.
In his keynote speech earlier, Teodoro lamented that defense spending in the country has long been ‘miserably low.’
Teodoro, however, said lawmakers are ‘receptive’ to the prospects of increasing the DND budget.
‘They are receptive, but what’s important for me right now is sustainment,’ he said.
The DND seeks a P295.2 billion budget for 2026.
On the other hand, the DPWH proposed a budget of P881.3 billion for 2026.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Monday announced that the DPWH budget may be slashed up to P348 billion to cut the ‘red flags’ projects worth P271 billion and to trim the 20-percent across the board overpricing for road projects.
However, Gatchalian said the budget cut has yet to be finalized.