MANILA - Voting 179-1, the House plenary on Monday approved House Joint Resolution No. 48 authorizing the use of “Unprogrammed Funds” not exceeding P12 billion for the relief operations, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of areas affected by natural calamities.

“This joint resolution needed to be passed to provide legal basis to help all the disaster-stricken areas. The executive department must use the funds to the fullest because of the massive destruction to lives, property, food production, and business,” said House Speaker Prospero Nograles.

The source of the funding remains uncertain, however. House appropriations committee chair Quirino Rep. Junie Cua called the resolution an “appropriation cover” to allow Malacañang to immediately use funds if they become available.

In this case, it could be through loans or grants.

The 2009 General Appropriations Act allocated P75 billion under the “Unprogrammed Fund.” This item is a standby fund that may be used in case the government exceeds the revenue targets this year.

Congress initially mulled a P10 billion supplemental budget for the victims of storms “Ondoy” and “Pepeng.” However, a supplemental budget may only be drawn if the National Treasury certifies availability of funds or money from new collections resulting from new revenue measures.

Cua said the treasury doesn’t have available funds, and there’s no time to pass a new revenue measure.

Cua said the resolution is an “expression of the sense of Congress” that Malacañang can spend for relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of areas affected by the calamities.

Cua admited this is the first time this route—the use of unprogrammed funds—was taken by Congress.

Joson casts ‘no’ vote

The lone negative vote was registered by Nueva Ecija Rep. Edno Joson, who said the joint resolution “involves an illegal transfer of funds."

“The Constitution provides that no law shall be passed authorizing any transfer of appropriations. There can only be augmentation from savings. The use of unprogrammed funds, in effect, involves an illegal transfer of fund,” said the representative of one of hardest-hit areas.

Joson fears that certain projects, which were earlier funded, may be sacrificed because of the joint resolution.

Besides, the unprogrammed fund—assuming the government exceeds growth targets—may be used without the law.

Joson said the 2009 General Appropriations Act already authorizes the executive department to use the item for infrastructure projects. “Meaning, there is no need to pass this resolution,” he said.

Joson said he also fears that the lump-sum funding may not be efficiently used.

He recalled a similar funding in 1990, the P10-billion Pinatubo Fund, which was appropriated by Congress following the destructive eruption of Mt. Pinatubo .

“I don’t know what happened to that funding. If I recall, the P10 billion fund was full of shenanigans. I vote no,” Joson said.

Borrow locally

Meanwhile, former budget secretary and University of the Philippines professor Benjamin Diokno proposed that government borrow locally than from foreign sources for the rebuilding of typhoon-hit areas.

“I think a good strategy is to borrow from domestic sources rather than foreign. With the peso appreciating, largely because of weakening dollar, and to some extent, inflows of portfolio investment, it makes sense not to borrow from abroad. Dollar inflows will only strengthen the peso, which is bad for families of OFW workers and exporters,” he told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak.

As of end-June, the Philippines total debt stock stood at P4.227 trillion, 56% already coming from domestic creditors. The share of foreign-source loans, including loans from multilateral lenders, like World Bank and Asian Development Bank, has been reduced to 44%. - by Carmela Fonbuena, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak