The Office of the Ombudsman's request P4.721 billion budget for 2023 got the swift approval of the Senate.

During Tuesday's plenary budget debate, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III said that if the Ombudsman wishes to submit a budget wish list, the minority would be very open to entertaining it and examining it with the previous position of granting it.

"Should Ombudsman choose to exercise restraint knowing the limited fiscal space and that other offices need priority funding, we will perfectly understand that," he told Senator Sonny Angara, the budget sponsor.

Angara, who also chairs the Senate Finance Committee, welcomed Pimente's proposal, saying that the Ombudsman indeed appreciates his initiative.

"That is very kind of you. It's really most welcome, your Honor, this initiative coming from the minority from you and Senator Risa," Angara said.

Pimentel responded by saying there shouldn't be a rift between the majority and minority when it comes to supporting the Ombudsman's budget.

SUCs get P97.4B

State universities and colleges are set to receive a much lower budget for 2023 after the Senate proposed a P97.4 billion budget, P6.7 billion less than what was given this year.

The figure, however, is still higher than the P93 billion proposed under the 2023 National Expenditures Program.

The budgets for all SUCs, except the University of the Philippines System, have been swiftly approved during Monday night's plenary session.

Deliberations for the UP budget took a little longer due to the funding and operation of the Philippine General Hospital.

In the Senate-backed budget for SUCs, Central Luzon, with its 12 schools, will receive the biggest allocation at P7.79 billion or eight percent of the total proposed budget, followed by Western Visayas with P7.75 billion and Metro Manila with P6.5 billion.

P210.6B for DSWD

The P210,631,390,000 proposed 2023 budget for the Department of Social Welfare and Development and its attached agencies, has been approved by the Senate Monday night.

That agencies are the Council for the Welfare of Children, National Anti-Poverty Commission, National Commission for Indigenous Peoples and Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council.

Senator Imee Marcos, who defended the DSWD budget, clarified that the department relies exclusively on the National Household targeting system which it undertakes in coordination with the municipal provincial social welfare officers especially in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program listing, and not the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Dan Navarro, Cherk Balagtas, Jom Garner and Edjen Oliquino
@tribunephl_ dbn @tribunephl_ cherk @tribunephl_ jom and @tribunephl_ eao