Bayan wants OP stripped of intel funds

Gaite said the OP should not be given intelligence funds as there are specialized agencies that do intelligence gathering. #intelfunds #OPbudget

Leftist lawmakers on Monday asked the House of Representatives to realign the P4.5 blllion intelligence funds under the Office of the President’s (OP) proposed budget to basic social services.

During the plenary deliberation on the said budget, Bayan Muna Rep. Ferdinand Gaite called the 400 percent increase in the intelligence fund–from P2.5 billion allocated in the last three years–unprecedented.

He said it should be used for the benefit of the poor.

House appropriations panel chair Rep. Isidro Ungab, the sponsor of the OP budget, disagreed with Gaite saying the president, as commander in chief, needs intelligence and confidential information in order to effectively and precisely plan all intensified efforts to suppress the threats against national security, insurgency and transnational crimes.

“The president should be updated, should be abreast and I believe we should grant this request,” he said.

Gaite said the OP should not be given intelligence funds as there are specialized agencies that do intelligence gathering. He also said the funds are not subject to audit and could be used against critics of the government.

“Ang Office of the President ay hindi isang intelligence gathering office. Yung request na dagdagan ng bilyon ang confidential, intelligence funds ay nasa Kongresong ito at ‘di [ako] naniniwala na dapat bahagi ito ng Office of the President,” he said.

In response, Ungab made an assurance that the utilization of funds will follow guidelines and procedures.

Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas shares the same sentiment and suggested that the controversial budget be realigned to agencies which suffered budget cuts.

“Mas makabubuti at magiging kapaki-pakinabang na ang budget natin ay ididirekta na lang sa na-cut na mga budget sa basic services kaysa ilagay po ito sa lumolobong intelligence and confidential funds. Ilagay po ito sa health education and housing,” said Brosas.

Sarah Elago of Kabataan Partylist, for her part, floated the possibility of using the intelligence funds to assist the supposed victims of the war on drugs.

“Would it be possible to rechannel the P4.5 billion confidential and intelligence funds to programs, activities and projects that would support not only the families of those children and youth killed during drug war operations but also in support of the children who witnessed the drug war and whose parents are now arrested?”

The plenary terminated deliberations on the OP budget after the interpellation of lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc.