Press Release
October 20, 2008

ROXAS TO GOV'T: HEED BROAD CALL FOR BUDGET REVAMP
GOV'T SHOULD NOW CALL FOR MULTIPARTISAN BUDGET SUMMIT

Liberal President Senator Mar Roxas today challenged the government to heed the broad call for the revamp of the 2009 national budget in order to shield the country from the negative effects of the global financial and economic crisis.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Trade and Commerce also reiterated his call for a multi-partisan Budget Summit.

"Palakas na nang palakas na tinig ng mamamayan para repasuhin ang budget at itutok ito sa mga pinaka-pangangailangan ng bayan. Dapat nang makinig ang gobyerno at magpatawag ng Budget Summit (The voice of the people calling for the revamp of the budget is getting louder and louder. The government should heed their call and convene a Budget Summit)," he said.

"Kung hindi pa mabulabog ang gobyerno rito, talagang manhid na sila sa paghihirap ng taumbayan (If the government isn't even rattled, then they're really insensitive to the plight of our people)," he stressed.

"I thank those who supported my call to revamp the 2009 budget. They are fellow legislators, experts and academicians, and most importantly ordinary people, who saw the need to refocus the budget to our most pressing priorities," he added.

The Ilonggo senator, in particular, cited fellow Visayan legislators Antonio Cuenco and Raul del Mar (Cebu City House representatives) who recently expressed support to his proposed amendments to focus the budget on providing food and job security and improving education and healthcare services. He said he will be glad to meet with Del Mar, a House deputy speaker, and discuss the amendments with him in detail.

Roxas, with the help of some of the country's best economists and fiscal planning experts, recently proposed at least P100 billion to be realigned to provide targeted safety nets. These safety nets focus on three priorities: food security, job security, and health and education services.

"Times have changed, and we must not be bound by old solutions that would not work today. Our people's lives depend on our responsiveness to the challenges ahead of us," he said.

He outlined his P100-bilion financial crisis budget as follows:

1. A one-time income tax credit or refund for four million fixed-income workers worth P5,000 each, or a total of P20 billion.

"People are going to be experiencing hard times. This means they will need as much help with their finances as they can get. By putting more money in people's pockets, we are able to stimulate consumer demand and keep our industries going," he said.

2. P20 billion as additional budget for the education sector, of which P4.2 billion be spent for classroom building; P3.8 billion for teachers' salaries and training; P4.2 billion for desks and furniture; P200 million for school books; P7.2 billion to finance an extra year of high school, pursuant to SB 2294; and P400 million for maintenance and other operating expenses.

3. P12 billion funding for the government's health peace corps program, which would provide 45,000 barangays with health care services and benefits.

4. P10 billion to the DSWD's Conditional Cash Transfer program, twice the current amount of P5 billion, to provide greater financial assistance to those who need it the most.

5. P10 billion in agriculture support, including programs to rehabilitate 1.4 million hectares of irrigated land nationwide, provide agricultural extension services and research & development.

6. P15-billion allocation for the Development Bank of the Philippines for providing financial assistance to boost capital and productivity of micro, small and medium enterprises.

7. P3 billion to be allocated to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to help it deal with the expected return of thousands of OFWs affected by the projected job losses as the world economy slows down.

8. P10 billion on top of the budgets of agencies such as Philippine Health Insurance Corp., the Bureau of Food and Drugs and the Philippine International Trading Corp., among other agencies, which would also help in the implementation of the Cheaper Medicines Act, principally authored by Roxas.

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