Zubiri P500 Billion Will Be A “Good Amount”
ZUBIRI – Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri explained why they wanted to pass higher amount for Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2.
On Monday, July 27, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivered his 5th State of the Nations Address (SONA). In his address, he thanked the healthcare workers who are fighting the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Duterte said they set aside billions to help the poor families and displaced workers. Last March he signed into law the Bayanihan to Heal as One-Act. The law grants him additional authority to combat the pandemic.
Based on a report from ABS-CBN News, the country has incurred trillions if foreign debt as it fights with the pandemic. The health crisis left at least 7.3 million jobless and caused the economy to contract.
The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act lapsed on June 25. Senator Sonny Angara recently proposed the second emergency law the ‘Bayanihan to Recover as One’ bill or ‘Bayanihan 2.’ The bill allocates P140 billion for the government’s COVID-19 response.
Senator Migz Zubiri said a P500 billion budget for COVID-19 pandemic response program will be enough to help the displaced workers and transport groups and businesses. That is more than three times the proposed amount.
“I think P500 billion would be a good amount,” he told ANC.
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While most of the Senators want a bigger budget, the finance department repeatedly warned them “not to go over” P140 billion because the government agency lacks “money that they can spend.”
“In other words, they don’t want to put an amount that they cannot fund, and so of course, being prudent about it, we didn’t want the Bayanihan 2 to be vetoed then we have to go back to the drawing board and do it again. It’s a waste of time…”
“Kulang na kulang ang funding… We had to do it lang because as the teacher would say, ‘Finished or not finished please pass your paper.’ So we passed the paper but the checking is still with the executive. We can still we can still amend the law,” he added.
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