The chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations on Tuesday assured funding support for the infrastructure modernization program of the Duterte administration.
In a news statement, PDP-Laban Rep. Karlo Nograles of Davao City vowed that the government would have enough funds to make this happen.
“To hasten national economic development, we have to build and modernize the needed infrastructures nationwide. We anticipate that the President, in his State of the Nation Address [Sona], will spell out his crucial public infra-building program that will boost the country’s economy,” Nograles said.
President Duterte, the lawmaker added, has laid down a three-year rolling infrastructure program that would cost at least P1.13 trillion for 2018, P1.18 trillion for 2019 and P1.29 trillion for 2020.
These infrastructure projects form the core of the government’s new economic master plan called “Dutertenomics”. Most of these projects are intended for transportation projects in Metro Manila and other major urban centers.
“The logic of Dutertenomics [is that] if we modernize our infrastructure, we will modernize the economy down to the farthest municipality. And everything else will follow,” Nograles added.
The lawmaker said Dutertenomics, which focuses on building the needed infrastructures, will also bring balanced development nationwide, especially in long-neglected regions in Mindanao and the Visayas.
He added his panel would also prioritize the Duterte government’s “Build, Build, Build” program, as this will have cascading effects on all aspects of development, such as health care, education, job and investment generation, poverty alleviation and even peace and order.
“We cannot waste time. The time to build critical infrastructures, like railways, bridges, expressways, subways and other infrastructures, is now,” Nograles said.
Earlier, Duterte has approved the 2018 budget proposal of the Department of Budget and Management amounting to P3.767 trillion, which is 12.4 percent higher than the 2017 national budget and equates to 21.6 percent of the GDP.
Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said his agency is eyeing to submit the 2018 budget on the day of the President’s second Sona on July 24.
Personnel services will continue to receive the largest chunk of the pie at 29.4 percent. Infrastructure and capital outlays come second in priority with 25.4 percent, significantly boosting the government’s “Build, Build, Build” campaign.
This was followed by local government units at 16 percent and maintenance at 14.5 percent. Debt burden and government-owned and -controlled corporations will obtain the lowest allocations at 9.8 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively.
The education sector remains to be the top recipient of the national budget, while the Department of Public Works and Highways maintains its spot as second priority.