Senators laud SC for upholding Congress’ power of the purse

(Updated 9:28 p.m.) Senators on Tuesday lauded the Supreme Court ruling that found the Aquino administration’s Disbursement Acceleration Program unconstitutional, saying the high tribunal in doing so upheld Congress’ exclusive authority to set the national budget.

Senator Jinggoy Estrada, whose privilege speech put the DAP in the spotlight, said budget officials must be held liable for certain acts declared unconstitutional by the high tribunal.

“Now that the highest court of the land said that the DAP mechanism is unconstitutional and illegal, heads must roll and budget officials must be held accountable,” Estrada said in a statement issued by his office Tuesday while he is in detention in connection with the alleged P10-billion pork barrel scam.

Estrada commended the high court for “respecting and upholding Congress’ exclusive power of the purse.”

Earlier in the day, the SC declared certain “acts and practices” under the DAP as unconstitutional, including the use of withdrawn unobligated allotments and unreleased appropriations as savings.

The DAP started making headlines last September after Estrada bared during a privilege speech that he and other senators who favored former Chief Justice Renato Corona’s conviction in 2012 received P50 million in additional funds after the impeachment trial.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad later admitted that the additional funds came from the DAP, but maintained that the allocations were neither bribes nor incentives.

Estrada delivered the speech after he, Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile and Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. were charged with plunder and graft before the Ombudsman in connection with the pork barrel scam.

Estrada is currently detained while facing plunder and graft charges.

‘Playing favorites’

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago, meanwhile, said the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) encroached on Congress’ budget powers through the DAP.

“Using the DAP, the budget department is basically realigning funds without public discussion in Congress. In effect, they are chipping away at the legislative power of the purse by fiddling with the budget,” Santiago said in a separate statement.

She added that the executive department cannot just use government funds to “play favorites” among agencies and legislators.

“In releasing funds, the executive branch cannot play favorites when carrying out constitutional commands such as social justice, social services, and equal work opportunities,” she said.

“The DAP releases, flawed as they were from the very beginning, played favorites among senators.  That was clearly unconstitutional,” Santiago added.

Santiago called on the Commission on Audit (COA) to probe into Estrada’s allegations that some senators were “bribed” during Corona’s impeachment trial.

The senator pushed for the passage of her Senate Bill No. 404, or the Budget Impoundment Control Bill, which seeks to require the President to ask for Congress’ approval before impounding government funds.

Funds properly spent

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, an administration ally, meanwhile said that while executive officials may have committed some “oversight,” most of the DAP funds were “properly spent.”

“Remember that there is no allegation that they were stolen. The debate was on the process followed. The discussion centered on the means rather than the end,” Recto said in a separate statement.

He added that the Aquino administration has already “unilaterally terminated” the DAP ever since legal questions were raised against the program.

“To the credit of this administration, it is no longer doing any and all acts the Supreme Court has struck down as unconstitutional. These practices have long been abandoned. These violations are not in progress,” Recto said.

Senator Francis Escudero, finance committee chairman, for his part, said the SC ruling on DAP “will have far reaching consequences” on government budgeting.

“We will study the decision carefully, with a view to following and implementing it in the current, 2015 and succeeding budgets,” Escudero said in a text message.

DAP benefits

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda maintained that Aquino’s move to source the DAP from government savings was legal.

“Savings, under the Constitution, can be realigned… That is in the Constitution… We strongly believe that the DAP has benefited the country,” Lacierda said Monday.

He added that the DAP helped boost the country’s gross domestic product.