00:00A senator gave a statement that there will be no problem if there will be a slight delay in the 2025 national budget.
00:07It is if the fund will be more planned for the next year.
00:11Velco Stolio of PTV in Balitang Pabansa.
00:16Senator Ayne Marcos initiated the budget breakdown of the Department of Public Works and Highways in the plenary session of the Senate.
00:23She is one of the senators who did not sign the House Bill 10800 or the General Appropriations Act 2025
00:30because she was suspicious of the line items as the highest in the DPWH's fund.
00:35It turned out that Senator Marcos thought of the Various Infrastructure Project
00:39or the senator called a VIP for the line item.
00:43For some VIPs, real talk, can anyone in this chamber,
00:48this August chamber, ascertain what are these infrastructure projects by just looking at the BICAM report?
00:56Can any of us determine what is included and comprising the additional 350 additional funding to DPWH
01:07as well as the projects and programs defunded as part of the 61.834 reduction?
01:15The senator hit the budget in her privileged speech for the assistance of the Kapos Angkita Program or ACAP and the Zero Subsidy of PhilHealth.
01:23But according to Senator Coco Pimentel in the media,
01:26the 2025 National Budget is not yet final for the Zero Government Subsidy of PhilHealth and a lower fund for education.
01:34According to Senator Pimentel, the budget of the DPWH that Senator Ayne Marcos prioritized may change.
01:42If there are line items about infrastructure, there are amounts here.
01:48If it is here now, it means that there is no legal basis to spend those amounts,
01:53minus the 1.1 trillion of infrastructure budget to come up with a new total for infrastructure.
02:03Senator Pimentel also said that it won't be a problem if there will be a slight delay in the 2025 budget.
02:10It's better to have an acceptable budget law than to have a budget law that is being promoted by the people
02:18just for the sake of having one before December 31.
02:21Vel Custodio, Balitang Pambansa.
