Malacañang said President Duterte certified the proposed 2020 national budget to avoid a repeat of the delay of its passage and adversely affect the administration’s economic program and delivery of services to the public.
Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo made the statement after it was reported that Duterte certified the proposed P4.1-trillion budget bill as urgent Tuesday.
Panelo said Duterte certified the bill as urgent to remind lawmakers of the effects of a reenacted budget to the country.
“In certifying the urgency of the budget bill, PRRD wants to convey to the members of Congress the importance of passing the General Appropriations Bill on time to avoid a repeat of a reenacted budget that wreaked havoc to the economic program of this administration, affected the timely delivery of basic services to the people, and ultimately, slowed our growth during the first quarter of this year,” he said.
“Government operations must never be hampered and our constitutional mandate to serve the Filipino people must prevail over partisan considerations and constant differences or varying interpretations on the budget,” he added.
The government operated on a reenactment of the 2018 budget for the first four months of 2019 following accusations about insertions in the budget among the lawmakers. (Argyll Geducos)
