THE MARCOS administration is proposing a P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027, describing it as a budget for inclusive growth, stronger public services, and a more resilient Philippines.
For ordinary families in Panay, however, the national budget is not a people’s budget if the trillions of pesos written in the government documents do not translate to rice and other food items being affordable, farmers being able to continue planting, workers finding decent jobs and earning living wages, children staying in school, and families getting treatment in hospitals without fear of the cost.
The proposed budget shows a troubling contradiction. While the government speaks of inclusive development, the 2027 NEP shows Social Services decreasing by 5.53% and Agriculture and Agrarian Reform also declining by 11.68%. These figures reveal the direction of government spending and the priorities of those in power.
ON FOOD SECURITY
Panay is an agricultural region where rice farmers, sugar workers, fisherfolk, and other rural communities play a major role in producing food for Western Visayas and the country. Yet the 2027 budget proposes to cut the funding for the Department of Agriculture by P14.44 billion, and for the National Irrigation Administration by P16.89 billion. Subsidies for national and communal irrigation systems are also reduced by P21.1 billion. For farmers, these budget cuts can mean that their crops won’t survive dry months, and fertilizer, fuel, seeds, and machinery will continue to be expensive.
PAMANGGAS documented that during the last cropping year, palay prices in Panay fell as low as P8 per kilo, while production costs were estimated at P12.91 to P16.99 per kilo. At the same time, consumers face retail rice prices of around P46–50 per kilo. This gap between what farmers receive and what consumers pay shows how both producers and consumers can lose under the present food system. Food security cannot be achieved simply by relying on imports; it begins by ensuring that farmers benefit from the national budget and can avail of the resources to produce food and earn a decent living from their work.
ON WAGES AND JOBS
Workers need decent, stable jobs and living wages, not mere temporary relief. Yet the proposed 2027 budget also cuts programs that workers depend on. The Department of Labor and Employment and its attached agencies face a 23% reduction, from P61.1 billion to P47.06 billion, with reductions also affecting worker protection and livelihood assistance. These cuts do not respond to the reality that many workers in Panay survive through seasonal, contractual, informal, and low-paying jobs: the latest Philippine Statistics Authority data show that around 122,000 workers in Western Visayas are unemployed, while another 290,000 are underemployed. This means hundreds of thousands of workers either have no job or are working but do not have enough work or income to meet their needs.
Also, the Panay Consumers Alliance estimates that a family of five needs around P22,595 a month for basic food, housing, transportation, and household expenses. At a P550 daily minimum wage, a worker’s monthly income covers only around 63% of this amount, even before accounting for education and healthcare costs. At a time when workers intensify their assertion of the right to livelihood and to living wages, the proposed national budget is attuned to providing workers with stronger protections.
ON EDUCATION AND HEALTH
Families across Panay already know how difficult it is to keep children in school as transportation, food, school supplies, and other household expenses rise. Yet the proposed Department of Education allocation falls from P1.345 trillion to P1.314 trillion, with cuts also affecting operating and capital expenses. State universities and colleges likewise face reductions. In Western Visayas, families are already confronting problems in keeping their children in school. DepEd-6 data show declines in enrollment in several grade levels from SY 2022–2023 to 2024–2025, while progression, retention, and completion indicators have also weakened. The region’s three-year average shows that only 8 in 10 learners completed secondary education.
Health is no less urgent. The proposed 2027 budget allots zero capital outlay for all 86 DOH public hospitals, alongside reductions affecting the operations of several public hospitals. For poor and working families, public hospitals are often the only option when someone becomes seriously ill. Underfunded hospitals mean crowded facilities, limited resources, and greater pressure on families already struggling to make ends meet.
MISPLACED PRIORITIES
The proposed budget increases spending for infrastructure while reducing allocations for several sectors that directly affect people’s welfare. While Panay does need better roads, bridges, irrigation, water systems, and genuine flood protection, infrastructure must be judged by whether it reduces people’s burdens, strengthens livelihoods, protects communities, and delivers lasting public benefit.
Given that the 2027 budget operates within the same bureaucrat capitalist system that still places high value on projects lining the pockets of favored contractors and politicians, it will not answer the basic needs of the people: food on the table, decent work, quality education, accessible health care, and safe communities. – BAGONG ALYANSANG MAKABAYAN < bayanpanay2014@gmail.com>
