CLA, #abolishpork hold forum to discuss DAP, other pork barrel issues

The College of Liberal Arts (CLA), in cooperation with the #abolishpork movement, held an open forum last July 11 at the William Shaw Little Theater, to discuss the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), pork barrel funds, and other governance issues, especially on accountability.

The opening remarks were led by CLA Vice Dean Dr. Rhoderick Nuncio and Mo. Mary John Mananzanan OSB, the convenor of the #abolishpork movement. A part of their opening remarks highlighted President Noynoy Aquino’s responsibility to respond to the demands of the people and the fulfillment of the People’s Initiative on the Pork Barrel Abolition Act. A series of presentations followed the opening remarks.

The DAP anomaly

Bayan Muna party-list representative Neri Colmenares opened his presentation by defining Pork Barrel. Colmenares explained that the misallocation of pork barrel funds happens when politicians monopolize the decision of where the tax payers’ money should be spent. He also informed that there are many forms of pork barrel fund such as Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), Malampaya Fund and the DAP, to name a few.

Colmenares also stressed that budget surpluses from the government’s unfinished projects cannot be declared as savings, and therefore cannot be allocated to other projects and government offices. Even if the surpluses are savings, it cannot be allocated to other government departments outside the original department it was allocated to. Colmenares cited that according to the Constitution, no law shall be passed realigning budgetary items – this is the same reason behind the Supreme Court declaring pork barrel funds as unconstitutional.

On the people’s initiative to abolish pork

Atty. Evalyn Ursua, a former University of the Philippines Law faculty and current human rights lawyer, presented an initiative that aims to abolish pork barrel. It is an initiative that will take advantage of a passage in the 1986 Philippine Constitution that allows citizens to pass a law through referendum. The proposed law is called the People’s Initiative Bill on the Abolition of the Pork Barrel System.

Ursua also said that there is no law that invokes criminal liability to government officials who misuse pork barrel funds and the People’s Initiative Bill aims to address the lack of graver punishments. The bill also wants to specify the different instances when a government transaction is considered in violation of correct appropriations. These are when implemented projects are not covered by the Appropriations Act, a lump sum insertion to a proposed budget, any direct or indirect intervention of Congress members on the implementation of an appropriation law, and declaring savings outside the cases provided in the bill.

A question was raised as to whether it would still be possible to improve the pork barrel system instead of completely abolishing it. Ursua replied that the problem is not on the implementation of the law, since it can never be assured that politicians can become incorruptible, rather, the problem lies on the pork barrel system itself.