bighit777 Quimbo: Blanks in 2025 budget only for final computation

Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo | PHOTO: Facebook page of Teacher Stella Quimbo

MANILA, Philippines — Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo has clarified that the blanks in the bicameral conference committee report on the 2025 national budget were only for the final computation of the amendments.

In an ambush interview on Monday afternoon, Quimbo reiterated that the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) was legal as the allocations on the then-proposed budget were already decided by the bicam before the House of Representatives and the Senate ratified the report.

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“Yes, so not withstanding any typographical errors or any adjustments that are needed as a result of amendments, the technical staff of both the House and Senate were authorized to make all of these necessary corrections,” Stella said in a mix of English and Filipino, when asked about the alleged blanks in the budget.

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“And just to clarify or to reiterate at the point of signing by the bicam members, all the appropriations amounts have already been decided upon,” she said.

“This means all the corrections of our technical staff, these are just ministerial only. This means this is just merely calculator activity only, they no longer have discretion because all of these are decided by the bicam members at the point of signing,” she added in Filipino.

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When asked if placing blanks is an existing practice, Quimbo said there are provisions that allow technical staffers to make necessary corrections to typographical errors when bills are approved.

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“These omnibus provisions are always there. This allows our technical staff or they are being given the authority to make necessary corrections.  It’s always there yearly,” she explained.

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Earlier, Quimbo released a statement reiterating that the enrolled budget bill submitted for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s signature in December 2024 was complete, amid questions and concerns from former lawmakers about alleged blanks in the line items.

Preliminary data from the BSP showed that net income rose to P95.2 billion as of end-July, up by 414 percent from the P18.5 billion in the same period last year.

It was a reference to the notorious “behest loans” granted to individuals or corporations favored by powerful government officials.

Quimbo clarified that there are two versions being discussed: the enrolled bill or the final version, and the bicameral conference committee report on the disagreeing provisions of the House of Representatives and the Senate’s version of the budget.

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“There are two key points I want to stress for the benefit of all. First, the enrolled General Appropriations Bill is complete, with no blank allocations among its more than 235,000 line items. Second, the Bicameral Report explicitly authorized the technical secretariats of both the Senate and the House of Representatives to implement corrections and adjustments as required. These do not affect the integrity nor the legality of the budget,” she added.

Quimbo also said that all the appropriations had been determined already when the lawmakers agreed to ratify the bicam report.  As such, the lawmaker said suggestions of irregularity were only politically motivated.

READ: Ex-solons hit budget blanks; enrolled budget bill is complete, says Quimbo

Former President Rodrigo Duterte and his ally, former appropriations panel head and Davao City 3rd District Rep. Isidro Ungab raised concerns about the blank items in the 2025 budget.

Last Wednesday, Ungab told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that he would challenge the legality of the 2025 GAA before the Supreme Court as there were blanks on the bicam committee report.

Copies of the bicam report showed that the blanks were mostly with the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Agrarian Reform programs, like allocations for the National Irrigation Authority and the National Food Authority.

READ: Duterte ally: Will raise budget ‘blanks’ issue before SC 

This supposedly goes against the Constitution’s Article VI, Section 24 which states that all “appropriation, revenue or tariff bills, bills authorizing increase of the public debt, bills of local application, and private bills shall originate exclusively in the House of Representatives.”

ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said last January 23 that constitutional issues regarding the 2025 national budget would only arise if it is true that the enrolled version of the budget bill has blanks.

READ: Blanks in enrolled GAB, if proven, will be constitutional issue – solon

Quimbo is the latest to insist that the enrolled budget bill had no blank provisions.

Last Tuesday, Senator Risa Hontiveros said that although she voted against the 2025 budget, she did not see any blanks in the items under the bicam report.

READ: Hontiveros rejects Duterte’s ‘blank items’ claim vs 2025 budget 

Senate President Francis Escudero also maintained that the bicam report which he signed had no blank items.

In an interview last Wednesday, Escudero said Ungab should have known better as he is aware of the budget processes.

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READ: Escudero: ‘No blank items on 2025 national budget I signed’ bighit777

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