Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito on Thursday urged his colleagues to consider restoring the P10 billion cut introduced by the House of Representatives to the P50-billion modernization funding for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for next year.

During the Senate plenary deliberations on the proposed P265.10 billion national budget of the Department of National Defense (DND) for next year, Ejercito emphasized the need for government investment in modernizing the country’s military forces.

“This investment in our national security is an investment to our future, our sovereignty, and most importantly to our men in uniform,” Ejercito said in his manifestation.

He expressed his support for the passage of the DND’s proposed 2025 national budget, which was sponsored by Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.

“We have a duty to our troops who risk their lives daily to stand guard over our homeland, and we must ensure they have the resources and equipment to accomplish their mission,” he said.

Dela Rosa also defended the recommended budget for the AFP’s modernization program, set as a special-purpose fund amounting to P40 billion, and likewise advocated for the restoration of the P10-billion cut.

Ejercito backed Dela Rosa, stressing that the fund is crucial to implementing the recently passed Revised AFP Modernization Law.

“We staunchly support the good sponsor of the DND’s budget, by my colleague Senator "Bato" Dela Rosa, in his critical mission to restore the 10-billion-peso budget cut and even augment if necessary essential for the success of the AFP Modernization Program,” Ejercito said.

“This aim is in line with the spirit of the Revised AFP Modernization Act, which prescribes an annual appropriation of at least P75 billion in the General Appropriations Act,” he added.

Ejercito noted that the budget cut had also led to delays in the AFP Modernization program.

“I reiterate my full support to the approval of the budget of the Department of National Defense, its attached agencies, and the AFP Modernization Program,” he said.