Senators vow proper budget computation for DPWH projects

Senators on Tuesday, 16 December, assured the chamber would not approve an overpriced budget for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said discussions are ongoing on whether to resume the third day of the bicameral committee conference, following the DPWH’s acknowledgement of its submission of insufficient initial data to the Senate Committee on Finance on the application of the updated Construction Materials Price Data (CMPD).

"The DPWH submitted the Revised Adjustment Factors. We are still studying it. When it gets validated, we will apply it to the projects in the 2026 national budget," Gatchalian said in Filipino.

The insufficient data submitted by the agency led to a deadlock over its P45-billion budget cut, prompting Gatchalian to call for a postponement of the bicameral meeting on Monday, 15 December.

He assured the public that the Senate will not allow "overpriced items."

"The important thing is there are no overpriced items and that the projects will be implemented correctly so that our economy will not be affected," he added.

Meanwhile, Senator Bam Aquino stressed that if the DPWH has issues with the Senate's computation, it should conduct its own recalculation and submit the correct budget using its new CMPD.

“We want the DPWH to come back to the table and give the proper computation. Secretary Vince Dizon said there are 10,000 projects of the agency. Then, compute and tell us how much they will be spending using the new CMPD," Aquino added.

He said the move would ensure the Senate approves a properly computed budget and avoids a repeat of anomalous flood control projects.

“That’s why we’re in the middle of this flood control scandal, because there are overpriced projects, there are ghost projects, and we just want to be sure that we sign off on budgets that are properly computed," Aquino said.