AKBAYAN Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno urged his fellow lawmakers on Wednesday to review the reduced allocations for education, health, skills development and social protection under the P7.2-trillion National Expenditure Program for 2027.
Diokno raised the concern during a House Committee on Appropriations hearing on the spending plan of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC). He cited reductions for the Department of Education (DepEd), state universities and colleges (SUCs), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), Department of Health (DOH), PhilHealth, and Department of Social Welfare and Development despite a 6-percent increase in the overall budget. ”We urge the committee to review and reprioritize funding for our schools, state universities, health services and social protection,” he said. ”The true foundation of a more stable and prosperous nation is investing in our people — in our students, workers, families and communities,” he added in Filipino. The lawmaker noted that the proposed DepEd budget would fall from P961.3 billion to P916.7 billion, SUCs from P137.9 billion to P134.5 billion, CHED from P47.5 billion to P34.6 billion and Tesda from P26 billion to P20.8 billion. DOH and PhilHealth funding would also decline by about P30 billion and P50 billion, respectively. Diokno warned that funding cuts across the education and health sectors for 2027 could result in reduced allocations for human capital and heavy reliance on dole outs, which in turn could slow down the country’s target long-term economic growth. ”We have observed that the budget for this year — based on the proposal — has indeed increased by 6 percent. However, it appears that funding has been reduced for agencies that directly invest in our people,” Diokno said. ”So, my question to the DBM (Department of Budget and Management) and the DBCC is: why does it seem like our government is unwilling to invest in its own citizens?” he added. DBM officials attributed the reductions largely to agencies’ budget utilization, absorptive capacity and readiness to implement programs. Diokno, however, questioned the proposed P112-billion increase in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) budget amid concerns over absorptive capacity, underutilization, implementation and corruption. ”Instead of pouring massive funds into the DPWH — an agency still plagued by rampant corruption — let us use the budget to extend assistance and ease the lives of our fellow citizens, especially the working class and the middle class,” he said.
