SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday said there were questionable line items in the proposed 2026 budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways, aside from flood control projects.
Gatchalian, chairman of the Committee on Finance, said the other infrastructure projects which appear questionable and are being reviewed are roads, bridges, and multi-purpose buildings (MPBs).
In an interview with radio dzBB, Gatchalian said other infrastructure projects with red flags are being reviewed, like roads, bridges, and multi-purpose buildings (MPBs).
An example, he said, is an item in the DPWH proposed budget which states that a certain amount was for the construction of four phases of a bridge, which he said in questionable.
“It was written there that the budget is for the construction of a bridge for a certain area. It will done in phase 1, phase 2, phase 3, and phase 4. What I’m wondering about is that you cannot construct a bridge in phases; you cannot use it,” he said in Filipino.
“So for me, that is a red flag, especially for the construction of that bridge,” he added.
Gatchalian said there were also “repeated projects,” those that have been done before but reappeared in the proposed budget, like roads and multi-purpose buildings.
He said the review will take time because of the number of roads, bridges, at MPBs.
Gatchalian said his office employed additional men to review the proposed DPWH budget which he said was written in paper, which he said could have been better if they were “digitalized” and recorded in Excel form so they can be easily analyzed.
Gatchalian also said he supports the proposal of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to give “zero budget” to flood control projects and instead realign the P270 billion to education and health care.
Gatchalian said he had the chance to talk to the President on Saturday in Valenzuela City where the latter celebrated his 68th birthday and proposed that portions of the DPWH flood control budget be used to fund hospitals.
He said the finance committee discovered there are many laws seeking to construct hospitals but these remain unfunded.
He said legitimate flood control projects will still be constructed as there are around P350 billion in allocations under the 2025 national budget and earlier, which have yet been utilized.
This would mean that flood control projects will not totally have zero budget come 2026.
