MANILA – Malacañang has expressed optimism that the House of Representatives can pass the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) containing the proposed P4.5 trillion 2021 national budget by tomorrow.
Spokesperson Harry Roque said he is confident of the passage with the squabble between representatives Lord Allan Velasco and Alan Peter Cayetano now put to an end.
“I’m confident though, that Speaker Velasco, as he promised to the President, can pass it on the 16th,” Roque said in an interview with CNN Philippines’ The Source on Wednesday.
He added that it is a must for the House to pass the measure on third and final reading by the special session’s end on Friday so the Senate can commence their plenary discussion of the measure.
“If he’s [Velasco] not able to [pass the GAB], then the suggestion made by some senators is to call for special [sessions] in November because there’s going to be another recess in November. That would be the opportunity for Congress to finish it,” Roque said.
“But it’s absolutely indispensable of course that it is signed within the month of December and published in the Official Gazette and in two newspapers of general circulation so that it can be effective the first of January,” he added.
Roque also reiterated that the Congress should do everything to pass the budget measure as a reenacted budget would spell “disaster” for the government’s pandemic response.
“A reenacted budget would be a disaster of sorts because there was no COVID when the 2020 budget was deliberated on and passed as law. The reenacted budget would not have any provision for COVID-19 response,” Roque said./PN
