Dy assures House commitment for thorough budget review

House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy maintained that the House of Representatives was more than willing to cooperate with calls to further open the budget process and allow for thorough scrutiny of fund allocations.

“We support proposals to make the national budget process more open, clear, and accountable,” Dy said in a statement. “The public has to know where public funds are spent, who proposed the projects, why these are needed, and who will benefit.”

The lawmaker from Isabela emphasized that Congress was prepared to release relevant documents to assist budget watchdogs and civil society organizations (CSOs), enabling the public to gain better insight into the national budget.

Dy clarified, however, that not all amendments made by lawmakers were made with ill intent, noting that it was the responsibility of district and party-list representatives to ensure that the needs of their constituents were considered in drafting the budget.

“It is the role of congressmen to fight for the needs of their districts. What’s important is that the project is properly completed, has complete documentation, and delivers real benefits to the people,” he stressed.

Given such responsibilities, the leader of the House said it was also part of their duty to ensure that the public was duly informed of how trillions of pesos in public funds were being utilized by the government.

“There is nothing to hide if there is no wrongdoing. And there is nothing to fear if the goal is to serve honestly,” he stated.

Dy’s sentiment comes amid continued calls from CSOs for a more thorough budgetary process, detailing how each line item was included and why funds were allocated to specific projects.

The People’s Budget Coalition had previously flagged billions of pesos in supposed “pork” insertions and allocations, including renewed concerns over infrastructure funding.

Budget transparency was further called into question after the Supreme Court ruled various portions of the 2023, 2024, and 2025 budgets unconstitutional.

Some lawmakers have called for the 2027 House General Appropriations Bill—which was approved on third and final reading on 12 October—to be recalled to the House to ensure that no allocations or provisions violate the high court's ruling.

The 2027 budget is currently being deliberated in the Senate, which is slated to begin plenary debates when Congress resumes regular sessions on 9 November.