Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado dismissed the possibility of requesting for a supplemental budget for the government’s COVID-19 response efforts.
To date, the government has used up P358.86 billion in funds from pooled savings, realigned budgets, and unprogrammed appropriations to fight the pandemic.
This could be higher, Avisado said, as the budget department has yet to consolidate reports from different government offices.
“This is a continuing saga and we really need to be prepared particularly on the matter of providing the necessary funding support to all of our activities in response to COVID,” he explained.
The biggest chunk of this budget was for social amelioration or cash aid, which amounted to P100 billion for the first tranche.
Realigning of budget was granted to President Rodrigo Duterte by the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.
With community quarantine protocols expected to be maintained all over the country until June, economic experts are studying additional monetary and fiscal policies since asking for a supplemental budget does not have enough basis, the budget chief said.
The Duterte administration cannot ask for a supplemental budget since it has yet to find additional sources of revenue, Avisado said.
“Wala pong pagbabasehan ang ating supplemental budget,” he added.
[Requesting for a supplemental budget will not have basis]
For now, the government is doing its best with what are the “available” funds–realigning the P4.1 trillion national budget for 2020 and collecting dividends and savings from government firms to fund its pandemic fight, he said.
