00:00Congress and not the executive should explain the blanks in the BICAM report of the 2025 national budget according to Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.
00:14The BICAM report is different from the General Appropriations Bill that was passed by the President,
00:21even though it is one of the processes of the budget.
00:25Ivang Mayrina is right.
00:27We will not be responsible for this.
00:33This was answered by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin in the middle of the controversy about the blanks in the BICAM report of the 2025 national budget.
00:42Bersamin said that Congress and not the executive should explain the blanks in the BICAM report of the 2025 national budget.
00:47We will not be responsible for this because this is a BICAM report. We have nothing to do with the BICAM report.
00:54We only have to do with the finished product that was signed by the President, not the blank check.
01:04The so-called BICAM report ratified by the Congress is based on the General Appropriations Bill and passed by the President,
01:12which is in law as part of the 2025 General Appropriations Act or the national budget.
01:17Budget Secretary Amena Pangandaman said that there are no blanks in their copy of the General Appropriations Bill.
01:24So the so-called blanks are the only ones who can fill the blanks.
01:34If the allegations that there are blanks in the BICAM report is true, that it was ratified,
01:40this is wrong, said Professor Dan Gatmaitan of the University of the Philippines College of Law, who teaches constitutional law.
01:47He said that after the ratification, nothing should be added or reduced.
01:52The BICAM report should be included in the enrolled bill that was submitted to the President.
01:56After the BICAM, the insertions and appropriations are done.
02:02You cannot change that.
02:04You can do typos and forms to make it consistent.
02:08But adding value to the blank appropriations, that cannot be done.
02:14That should be agreed upon by both houses.
02:18The BICAM report said that they will go to the Supreme Court.
02:22That's why there were arguments to stop the implementation of the 2025 budget.
02:27But Bersamin believes that sometimes the Supreme Court serves as the chief justice and this will not happen.
02:32I cannot understand if the Supreme Court will have that tendency to put a stop to it.
02:39Even if any of those challengers will ask for a TRO.
02:43Because the government must function, must be run.
02:46Now, they will say it's a fallback on the re-enacted budget.
02:51But the re-enacted budget can come only when there is a finding that it has been vetoed
02:58or the Supreme Court has nullified the present budget.
03:03But that is yet to be in the end of the year or maybe when the resolution of these challenges will have been delivered.
03:12For GMA Integrated News, Ivan Mejrina for 24 Hours.
03:28For GMA Integrated News, Ivan Mejrina for 24 Hours.
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