Duterte okays P3.767 trillion budget for 2018
resident Rodrigo Duterte signed on Tuesday into law the General Appropriations Act of 2018, amounting to P3.767 trillion.
The 2018 GAA is 12 percent higher than last year’s budget.
Duterte, in a speech during the signing ceremony in Malacanang, said the budget will primarily support infrastructure development and free education in state universities and colleges, universal health care, free irrigation, and the maintenance of peace and order across the country.
"This will also fulfill my campaign promise of doubling the basic pay of our soldiers and police officers, which will take effect on the very first day of 2018," Duterte said.
The government needs P60 billion for the increase of basic pay of soldiers and policemen.
Senator Loren Legarda, chairperson of the Senate committe on finance, in a statement said that in the 2018 GAA, social services remains with the biggest share of the budget pie with 38.7 percent, followed by economic services with 30.5 percent, then general public services with 16.4 percent, then debt burden with 9.8 percent, and defense allocation with 4.6 percent.
Legarda said the top ten agencies with the highest budgetary allocations are as follows: (1) Education agencies inclusive of the Department of Education (DepEd), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and state universities and colleges (SUCs), with P664.8 billion; (2) the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) P637.8 billion; (3) the Department of Health (DOH), including budgetary support for government corporations (BSGC)[4], with P171.09 billion; (4) the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) with P170.7 billion; (5) the Department of National Defense (DND) with P149.69 billion; (6) the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) with P141.8 billion; (7) the Department of Agriculture (DA) and its attached agencies with P103.07 billion; (8) the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and BSGC with P70.9 billion; (9) the Department of Finance (DOF) and BSGC with P48.07 billion; and (10) the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) with P24.9 billion
The Department of Budget and Management said the 2018 budget will support the government’s objectives of "achieving robust and inclusive growth of 7 to 8 percent" for next year.
Duterte described the newly approved GAA as "a credible budget."
"I ensure everyone that this will be supported by the comprehensive tax reform program embodied by the TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion), subject to several line vetoes, which shall be discussed separately in my veto message," he said.
Malacanang has yet to release the veto message of Duterte. Celerina Monte/DMS
