MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. must be held accountable for signing and implementing the 2024 and 2025 national budgets declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio said Thursday.
“Marcos signed an unconstitutional budget, not once but twice. Then he implemented it and enabled the flood control corruption scandal,” Tinio said in an oniline press briefing, responding to Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro.
“The Supreme Court says that the authors, proponents, and implementors of the unconstitutional budgets of 2024 and 2025 may be held liable. Pres. Marcos, as the chief implementor, must be held accountable,” he added.
The ruling has also drawn calls for accountability from former Gabriela Women’s Party representative Arlene Brosas, who said it vindicated Makabayan lawmakers’ warnings about budget insertions and excessive unprogrammed appropriations.
Brosas urged the Ombudsman and the Commission on Audit to investigate possible violations and hold accountable officials found responsible, while calling for greater transparency in the preparation of the 2027 national budget.
