House lawmakers back additional budget for ombudsman’s flood control panel

Several members of the House of Representatives expressed support for additional funding for the Office of the Ombudsman to strengthen its investigation into personalities involved in anomalous flood control projects.

House Committee on Appropriations Vice Chairperson Brian Poe noted that the newly formed special panel of prosecutors investigating the projects has yet to be allocated funds in the 2026 budget.

“Because the panel was formed only recently, itong September, sigurado ako wala pa ‘yan sa budget ng 2026. Kaya, if we could look into kung magkano po ang kailangan nila para ipakita natin na Congress is supportive of this investigation and supportive of the efforts of our President and the Ombudsman,” Poe said during the committee’s budget hearing on Tuesday.

Committee Chairperson Mikaela Suansing emphasized the Ombudsman’s crucial role in ensuring the panel’s success and said lawmakers are willing to insert additional funding.

“And I know that will entail additional work, additional responsibilities on the part of the OMB. We want to make sure that we're able to factor that in. May panahon pa naman po na mapasok natin ‘yan sa proposal natin for fiscal year 2026. Again, we would need the help of the OMB to help please guide us para malaman natin ano ‘yung mga kailangan natin idagdag,” Suansing added.

The Ombudsman is requesting P6.23 billion under the 2026 National Expenditure Program.

Funding for casual positions and Ombudsman Assistance Centers

Assistant Ombudsman Adorie Cornito said they are also seeking additional budget for casual positions and the establishment of more Ombudsman Assistance Centers (OAC) nationwide.

Cornito said Congress is being asked to allocate P36 million for casual positions to aid the digitization of records and P93.6 million for six additional OACs.

“This funding is crucial for implementing the digitization of prior year records, which will help preserve the essential documents from degradation and facilitate easier access to record retrieval,” Cornito said.

“Furthermore, this initiative would effectively reduce the cost associated with the physical file storage while simultaneously enhancing the data protection, security, and control,” she added.

Ombudsman Jose Balmeo Jr. said the office recently hired around 200 personnel to help resolve a backlog of 950 fact-finding cases as of July.

“We have a total of 210 newly hired personnel, this would include lawyer and non-lawyer… and this would greatly complement our efforts to speed up the fact-finding and other investigation of our office,” Balmeo said.

He also cited space constraints at the Quezon City office as a key challenge. Balmeo said lawmakers suggested renting or leasing additional office space instead of purchasing new property.