Some senators are now reluctant or a bit ‘allergic’ to the term ‘insertion’ in the budget, which has become associated with questionable flood control projects.
Sen. JV Ejercito reiterated during Monday’s hearing of the subcommittee on finance that there was nothing improper with lawmakers proposing amendments after deliberating on the proposed budget of a government agency.
‘Maybe it’s just not being understood because of the issues. Now, some people have become afraid-whenever they hear ‘amendment’ or ‘insertion,’ they think it’s something bad. But not all amendments or insertions are bad, because if they improve, enhance, or supplement effective programs, then they are very important. And that’s part of our job-to make sure we function better,’ he said during the hearing.
‘We’ve become somewhat allergic to the word ‘insertion,” Ejercito later added, noting that it is through legislative interventions or amendments that legislators could help improve an agency’s programs.
Meanwhile, Sen. Loren Legarda rued how the Senate ‘has been unfairly brutalized’ because of amendments in the budget, also referred to as ‘insertions.’
But she noted government agencies are the ones seeking additional funding whenever they present their budget proposal to Congress.
Take the case of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), which asked the Senate during Monday’s hearing to realign some items in its budget to other locally funded projects.
At the start of the hearing, Acting DOTr Secretary Giovanni Lopez appealed to senators to reconsider their budget, as the ‘bulk’ of the agency’s capital outlay for infrastructure is for railway projects.
Lopez then said that, as ‘part of a department initiative,’ the DOTr was requesting some ‘reallocation or realignment’ that it deems important and necessary to fund other locally funded projects.
‘I’m glad that Secretary Lopez mentioned that because in the past days, including today, the Senate has been unfairly brutalized regarding proposed amendments, which were called insertions,’ Legarda said.
However, she said, she has yet to see an agency that does not request additional allocations during budget season.
‘When the Senate adds (funding), we’re judged, and people will say we are already amending, which is our constitutional duty. But for those who perhaps do not understand or are unaware of the process, they call it an ‘insertion.’ So we’re caught in a bind,’ Legarda said. ‘That’s not an insertion-that is a carefully studied amendment by the Senate, and that is part of the Senate’s duty,’ she further said. /das/abc