“We will protect the welfare of our people and look after the interest of the majority” as our President Benigno Simeon Aquino III said in his State of the Nation Address (SONA). From his SONA, our President considered dubbing the 2011 National Budget as “Reform Budget” because it is his quest for genuine change in spending and allocation policies. It also reflects his commitment to lift the nation from poverty through honest and effective governance. "The call of our times is for reform: to make this possible, we are submitting a budget and corresponding resources to the programs and policies that make real the changes we need to revitalize our economy, while leaving no sector behind."
For this “Reform Budget” to be possible, President Noynoy has approved a budget of P 1.645 trillion. But where will the government get this big amount of money?
Indeed this amount is too big to raise. But if everyone will cooperate, nothing is impossible. We all know that the government derives its revenues from taxes, which will then be used for different projects. Also, our national budget comes from the taxes they collect. And to raise P 1.645 trillion, our government need not to impose additional taxes on people. What they need to do is to collect taxes efficiently. But with the presence of corruption, these collections are not enough. Based on the estimate of Transparency International, it consumes 20 percent of the country’s budget. These are funds that could have been used to build quality classrooms and hospitals, good roads and bridges, or provide more livelihood programs.
We all knew that only BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) and BoC (Bureau of Customs) were the only agencies that contribute to our total revenue. Well, there are other revenue earners that are expected to contribute some P150 billion or about 11% of our revenue target for 2011. This will come from fee-collecting agencies, Bureau of the Treasury and the privatization proceeds.
The 2011 National Budget is meant to benefit the poor and vulnerable Filipinos. The resources will be allocated to address their needs. The government will focus on giving them jobs that will empower them, not just to put food on their table but to provide them with opportunities to rise above poverty.
Consistent with their bias for the poor, the social services sector will be their top priority. It will get a significant portion of the budget, some P560.8 billion or 34.1% of the total.The economic services sector comes next with P361.1 billion, 22.0 percent of the total budget. It is followed by our debt burden, with P372.1 billion (22.6 percent); general public services, with P273.5 billion (16.6 percent); and defense, with P77.5 billion (4.7 percent).
The ten departments receiving the biggest share of the 2011 budget are the same as in this year’s budget. There are changes, however, in their program composition and ranking.
AGENCY | BUDGET | Percentile |
1. DepEd | P207.3 billion (including the Educational Facilities Fund) (18.4% increase from previous year) | 12.6% |
2. DPWH | P110.6 billion | 6.7% |
3. DND | P104.7 billion (81.1% increase from previous year) | 6.36% |
4. DILG | P88.2 billion (increase of 32.6%) | 5.36% |
5. DA | P41.7 billion (decrease of 8.5%) | 2.53% |
6. DSWD | P34.3 billion (increase of 122%) | 2.08% |
7. DOH | P33.3 billion (increase of 13.6%) | 2.02% |
8. DOTC | P32.3 billion (an increase by 87.8%) | 1.96% |
9. DAR | P16.7 billion | 1.02% |
10.DOJ | P14.3 billion | 0.87% |
It is not all about the government,
we,
we,
the civil society
the media
the academe
public servants
and private individuals
also have the responsibility to track government expenditures.
The government believe that the responsibility to check where the funds go and how these are spent should not be left to the COA alone. We are all tasked with looking after the public welfare, and this includes prudence and accountability in the allocation and spending of public funds. Through the reform budget, the government hopes to prioritize the needs of the marginalized segments of our society, to restore the people’s trust in government through good governance and other initiatives, to accelerate growth via public-private partnerships, and to promote a sound environment for future generations – today.
If the government will be able to implement the “Reform Budget”, allocating the right amount to different sectors and using this budget in a way that that the citizen of the country will benefit especially the vulnerable and the poor, both the citizens of this country and the potential investors will trust in the administration, thus investing their money in our economy. It will provide job opportunities to many citizens enabling them to support their own basic needs. If this continuously happens, our economy will grow and our GDP and GNP will increase.
Also if the 10 departments who received the biggest share in the 2011 budget will be able to use the money allocated to them wisely, a huge percentage of the public will benefit. If the government will be able to give jobs to the unemployed, many Filipinos will not suffer from hunger. It is not all about having a job but also about having good education because indeed education is the key to reducing poverty. If everyone will be able to study, there will be lesser illiterates in the future, our next generation. Every Filipino around the world will be globally competitive.
-President Benigno S. Aquino
SOURCES:
Facebook
0 comments:
Post a Comment