THE SENATE finance committee will at least maintain the P673.019 million budget of the Office of the Vice President for 2020, with its chairman citing the possibility of a significant increase.
The 2020 National Expenditure Program (NEP) allocation for the OVP is 0.22% higher than its 2019 budget of P671.553 million.
“At the very least, we will protect your budget. I’m sure many of us would even want to increase it, given the demands of your office,” Committee chairman Juan Edgardo M. Angara told Vice President Ma. Leonor G. Robredo at a budget hearing Monday.
The proposed 2020 OVP budget allocates P99.558 million for personnel services, P552.525 million for maintenance and other operating expenses, and P12.400 million for capital outlays.
Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon said the OVP budget lacks funding for policy analysis, which he said hampers the OVP’s outreach to poor communities.
“I noticed there is no budget for a policy section in the Office of the Vice President. These are all geared towards helping the poor,” Mr. Drilon said.
“I think the office (needs to be) equipped with knowledge of the various policy issues that are being discussed.”
Ms. Robredo said the OVP has a four-man policy unit,headed by a consultant, given the budget constraints of the her office.
She also welcomed the chamber’s initiative to allocate additional funding for the OVP.
“If you will recall, nag-start kami, wala naman kaming pondo for programs, pero noong nalaman ng Senado din last year na marami kaming ginagawa pero umaasa lang kami sa private funding, sila na iyong nag-offer na dagdagan (we started with no funds for programs but when the Senate found out last year that we depend on private funding, the Senate offered to add to the budget). So nadagdagan kami ng P200 million last year (we received an additional P200 million last year),” Ms. Robredo told reporters after the budget hearing Monday. — Charmaine A. Tadalan
