SPEAKER Martin Romualdez and Tingog party-list lawmakers yesterday filed a resolution calling for the accreditation of “bona fide” people’s organizations to participate as non-voting observers in the budget hearings of the House of Representatives.
House Resolution (HR) No. 94 was filed in response to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s call for budget reforms during his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) last Monday.
Romualdez has committed he would push to open bicameral deliberations on the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), the government spending measure approved by the House, to the public and civil society observers.
HR 94 was co-authored by Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez, the Speaker’s wife, Andrew Julian Romualdez, their son, and Jude Acidre, who affirmed the House’s commitment “to inclusive development and meaningful public participation in one of the most consequential legislative functions: crafting the national budget.”
“We want a budget process that truly listens to the people. Mahalagang may boses ang taumbayan sa umpisa pa lang ng budget deliberation upang lalong matugunan ang mga pangangailangan ng mamamayan (It’s important for the people to have a voice from the start of the budget deliberations so we can better respond to the people’s needs),” the Speaker said.
“Kaya gusto natin siguraduhin na may kinatawan ang civil society sa mga pagdinig (That’s why we want to ensure that civil society will have representatives in the hearings). This will ensure that the budget process is transparent and accountable to the people,” Romualdez added.
“It’s about giving citizens a seat at the table, through civil society organizations,” he also said.
Party-list Reps. Leila de Lima (Mamamayang Liberal), Jose Manuel Diokno, Percival Cendana and Dadah Kiram Ismula of Akbayan, and Krisel Lagman of Albay have earlier filed Joint Resolution No. 2, which seeks to open to the public the budget deliberations in the bicameral level, where insertions in the proposed General Appropriations Act (GAA) have traditionally been made.
The House is set to begin marathon hearings on the Malacañang’s proposed P6.793 trillion national budget for 2026, which is expected to be submitted by the Department of Budget and Management this month.
Under the proposed guidelines in the resolution, the House Committee on Appropriations, in coordination with the Committee on People’s Participation, shall “determine the eligibility, accreditation process and scope of civil society groups’ participation in accordance with House rules.”
It cited Sections 15 and 16 of Article XIII of the Constitution which recognizes the right of the people to participate in decision-making and protect their collective interests.
It also cited Section 3, Chapter 2, Book VI of the Revised Administrative Code, which treats budget as “an instrument of national development.”
“The active participation of stakeholders — including bona fide people’s organizations — can help ensure that the national budget is grounded in the realities, aspirations, and needs of the Filipino people,” it said.
“Many non-government organizations and people’s organizations have developed significant expertise in key sectors such as education, public health, agriculture, social welfare, the environment, and local development, and their insights can meaningfully enhance the quality and responsiveness of budget deliberations,” it added.
