House passes ₱4.5-trillion budget for 2021

The House of Representatives passed on third and final reading the proposed 2021 General Appropriations Act as it ended Friday night the four-day special session called by President Duterte.

- BEN R. ROSARIO

The third and final reading passage of the P4.506-trillion national budget bill was immediately conducted after the second reading approval. This was made possible as the proposed measure was certified by President Duterte as an urgent administration bill.

In a virtual plenary session, the Lower Chamber registered 257 affirmative and six negative votes to pass House Bill 7727 or the proposed 2021 GAA on the third and final reading.

The six Makabayan solons, namely: Reps. Carlos Zarate (Bayan Muna); Ofelia Cullamat (Bayan Muna); Ferdinand Gaite (Bayan Muna); France Castro (ACTTeachers Partylist); Arlene Brosas (Gabriela Partylist); and Sara Jane Elago (Kabataan) thumbed down the budget measure.

Speaker Lord Allan Velasco presided over the third reading voting, his first since assuming the House leadership on Tuesday.

Previously, Deputy Speaker and 1Pacman Party-list Rep. Mikee Romero spent nearly seven hours on the presiding officer’s rostrum.

ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Eric Go Yap, chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, assured the Senate that the “soft copy” of the proposed P4.506-trillion appropriations bill should be expected by October 28.

“Wala na pong dahilan para mareenact o ma-delay ang budget para sa taong 2021 (There is no more reason for the re-enactment or delay of the budget for 2021),” Yap stated.