Sen. Panfilo Lacson on Tuesday flagged at least P51.82 billion worth of vague, "distinct" insertions in the 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP), and is targeting them for realignment to programs consistent with the Philippine Medium-Term Development Plan.

Lacson said these flagged items are for flood management programs for Metro Manila and Regions 1 (Ilocos), 2 (Cagayan Valley), and 3 (Central Luzon).

He said he and Senate finance committee chairman Sherwin Gatchalian have agreed to remove funding for these dubious projects in favor of more worthy ones.

"Sen. Gatchalian and I want to remove these vague entries in the NEP. It seems those who inserted these items plan to make them ghost projects. We could not identify who inserted them," he said in Filipino in an interview on dzRH radio.

"When we amend the budget bill, we intend to realign these items to those in accordance with the Philippine medium term development plan and in coordination and consultation with the Department of Budget and Management and Department of Public Works and Highways so our amendments will be aligned with the direction that the national government wants to take. Our plan is to remove these items because they are too vague," he added.

At the briefing of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) Tuesday, Lacson said these include:

* 88 items with P150 million funding each, totaling P13.2 billion

* 373 items with P100 million funding each, totaling P37.3 billion

* 11 items with P120 million funding each, totaling P1.32 billion

In his privilege speech last Aug. 20, Lacson described the multiple budget items with the same contract cost as "Distinct," a coded budget that indicate who owns the projects.

Many of the items lacked stationing, making them impossible to trace - a red flag for ghost projects.

Because of this, Lacson proposed an executive session so the senators would know which development programs to redirect the funds to programs in line with the Philippine Medium Term Development Plan. Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said she will coordinate with DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon on the matter.

"When contractors invade Congress and lawmakers invade the construction business, this is the outcome. The DPWH allows them to make insertions in the NEP," Lacson replied.

"Its impact on the Filipino is not just one, two or three whammies. It's a quadruple whammy because insertions are made in the NEP, the House and Senate versions of the budget bill, and the bicameral conference committee. It's a quadruple whammy on Filipinos," he added, to which Pangandaman agreed.

DPWH Involvement in Early Insertions

Also, Lacson said the DBM and Malacanang may want to quiz the Department of Public Works and Highways DPWH, noting that a representative of the DPWH had called legislators early to insert items into the NEP.

He cited the experience of Senate minority leader Vicente Sotto III, whose staff was called by a DPWH representative to insert items into the NEP.

"The caller was identified. The caller told Sotto's staff to propose items for insertion in the NEP but Sotto refused," Lacson said. Senate PRIB