Imee flags P37.5B in FALGU for possible election-related ayuda

Senator Imee Marcos on Thursday flagged the dramatic increase in financial assistance to local government units (FALGU) from the initial P5 billion this year to P37.49 billion for 2027, raising concerns that the budget could be used to advance partisan interests in the lead-up to the 2028 national elections.

FALGU is a lump-sum appropriation under the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF) managed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

Originally, FALGU funding for 2026 was pegged at P5 billion under the National Expenditure Program (NEP), but the General Appropriations Bill passed by the House of Representatives increased it to a staggering P41.85 billion.

Although the P41.85 billion was later slashed to P37.49 billion in the enacted 2026 budget, Marcos questioned why the DBM did not revert the allocation to its originally proposed level and retain the same amount in the 2027 NEP, the President’s proposed budget submitted to Congress for review.

“As we understand it, the usual policy of DBM is that the congressional increases are removed in the new budget for the following year…So what justifies this humongous increase in the allocation from 2026 to 2027, which was only P5 billion before and now has ballooned to P37.493 billion?” Marcos pressed the DBM during a Senate budget hearing.

More strikingly, Marcos pointed out that utilization remains low, meaning the funds were barely spent, which, she argued, does not justify retaining such a substantial allocation.

As of August, she said only P1.60 billion had been obligated, while disbursement stood at only P145.97 million.

“Isn't that what you always criticize us for, that the agencies that do not implement cannot increase their budget? Marcos asked.

DBM Acting Secretary Kim Robert de Leon explained that the DBM retained the P37.49 billion pursuant to the LGUs’ request.

Another factor contributing to the increase was the implementation of President Marcos Jr.’s “Bawat Bayan Makikinabang” program, which provides 10 kilos of rice twice every two months to indigent and vulnerable households through LGUs.

De Leon said the DBM intends to continue the rice program, which is why they sustain the allocation for 2027.

According to the DBM chief, “almost half of the amount appropriated for FALGU went to the rice distribution program”

Marcos, however, did not buy the rationale, given that the DBM does not just generally grant requests for additional funding due to limited fiscal space.

Additionally, the minority lawmaker argued that programs prioritized and funded by FALGU—such as rice, medical, burial, transport, food, and educational assistance—are mere duplications of social assistance already implemented by other agencies.

Marcos insisted that the DBM should leave these social assistance programs to be administered by the Department of Health and the Department of Social Welfare and Development to avoid duplication

“So how do you avoid the consideration that the huge increase in LGSF-FALGU, and all the seven under it, are not really aid in preparation for the 2028 election? Because that’s what’s clear to everyone,” Marcos stressed.

De Leon explained that the DBM follows strict guidelines on the LGSF-FALGU, adding that LGUs have spending caps for assistance to indigents.

He, however, admitted that the DBM could not independently verify whether there were indeed instances of “double-dipping.”

Nonetheless, he said the DBM administers the local government support fund and will submit to Congress's decision whether to lodge the line item with other agencies.

Opposition House lawmakers and budget watchdogs called the LGSF-FALGU “soft pork” due to its discretionary nature, which resembles the infamous pork barrel system already deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. Antonio Tinio explicitly tagged it as the “President’s pork” because the executive controls the funds, which he suspected could be used to gain leverage over LGUs in the upcoming elections.