Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on Monday welcomed President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s decision not to certify the proposed 2026 national budget as urgent, saying it would allow lawmakers to thoroughly review the spending measure before final approval.
Sotto said he learned from Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III that the House of Representatives will adjourn on Oct. 13 without receiving a presidential certificate of urgency for the budget bill.
“Why are they adjourning on the 13th? Ang napag-usapan (What was discussed) is they will not be given by the President certificate of urgency. The President himself said that he does not want to shortcut the three-day rule so there will be time to read and review what is being transmitted,” Sotto said.
Under legislative rules, the three-day interval between the second and third readings of a bill can only be waived if the President certifies it as urgent. The House had initially planned to pass the budget on second reading by Oct. 10 and on third reading shortly after.
Sotto said it was customary for previous presidents to issue such certifications yearly, but Marcos’ decision to avoid a “fast break” in the process was a welcome change.
“Taon-taon kasi fina-fast break eh. Eh ayaw nga ni Presidente na maisip na ifa-fast break, so ayaw niya nung three-day rule. Tama iyon (Every year, Congress tends to rush the process, but the President does not want that),” he said.
He added that taking time to review the budget between readings would lead to a more transparent and accountable process.
“Maganda talaga, tama ‘yan na hindi i-approve on the same day (It’s good that approval won’t be done on the same day). You have three days to go over and review what you approved on second reading before you vote on third reading,” Sotto said.
He cautioned against last-minute amendments and “insertions” during the bicameral conference committee deliberations, saying all proposals should be made openly on the Senate floor and properly recorded.
“Ang importante is you do it on plenary so talagang naka-record kung sino ang nag-propose, ano ang prinopose, at saan kukunin yung pambayad (What’s important is that all proposals are made in plenary, recorded, and funded properly),” he said.
Sotto also said he had discussed with the Senate Committee on Finance the need to minimize “unprogrammed funds” in the budget.
“As much as possible, we will go 100 percent with no unprogrammed funds. Yung foreign-assisted lang ang ia-allow natin (Only foreign-assisted projects will be allowed as unprogrammed funds),” he said.
Sotto clarified that the issue was briefly mentioned during the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) meeting, where both chambers consolidated their legislative priorities.
He said the House listed over 200 measures, the Senate around 68 and the Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DepDev) submitted additional bills, of which 12 were jointly identified as LEDAC priorities for the current session. (PNA)