A LAWMAKER urged Congress to scrutinize proposed cuts to health and agriculture funding in the 2027 national budget, saying lawmakers should determine whether the reductions could affect essential programs and services.
Bukidnon Rep. Jonathan Keith T. Flores said the proposed health budget is P95.7 billion lower than this year’s level, while funding for agriculture and agrarian reform is set to decline by P36.59 billion.
“When changes in the health and agriculture budgets are this large, it must be clear which programs are affected, why the amounts changed and what the effect on services will be,” he said in a statement in Filipino.
He added that the cuts should be examined at the program level to determine why funding changed and how the adjustments could affect beneficiaries and government targets for 2027.
Mr. Flores said he would seek explanations from the Department of Budget and Management, Department of Health and Department of Agriculture during budget hearings, particularly on programs that were reduced, discontinued, completed or transferred to other budget items.
In agriculture, he cited the National Rice Program, Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Program and farm-to-market road projects, saying Congress should determine whether their proposed funding is sufficient to meet their objectives.
He also backed greater disclosure of changes made to the National Expenditure Program during congressional deliberations, allowing lawmakers and the public to track major budget increases, reductions and reallocations.
Separately, Party-list Rep. Sarah Jane I. Elago called for scrutiny of the proposed P107.4-billion allocation for flood control programs in 2027.
Ms. Elago said the size of the allocation warrants closer examination as communities continue to suffer from flooding despite billions of pesos spent on flood control projects.
“Our fellow citizens are swimming in floods while the big fish swim in the people’s money,” she said in Filipino.
She also called for greater funding for health, education, housing, food, livelihood, social services and environmental protection, including nature-based approaches to disaster risk reduction. — Pexcel John Bacon