Marcos office asking for P4.5-B confidential, intel funds; NTF-ELCAC, P7.8B

The proposed P6.35 trillion national budget for 2025 or the National Expenditure Program (NEP) has allocated P4.56 billion worth of confidential and intelligence (CIF) funds to the Office of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.

Based on the NEP documents which can be accessed at the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) website, the P4.56 billion is broken down to P2.25 billion confidential fund and P2.31 billion intelligence fund.

This proposed confidential and intelligence fund (CIF) for the President's office is the same for 2024.

Likewise, the proposed 2025 national budget also earmarked P7.8 billion for the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

The NEP documents stated that the P7.8 billion will support the Barangay Development Program of the anti-communist body.

In February this year,  the United Nations Special Rapporteur recommended the NTF-ELCAC abolition due to its failure to serve its purpose. 

Marcos, however, maintained that there is no reason to abolish the NTF-ELCAC.

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman earlier told reporters that the total CIF under the proposed 2025 budget only reached P10.2 billion or lower than the 2024 CIF allocation of P12 billion. 

More confidential funds were allocated to government agencies for the coming year - P4.368 billion, up from P4.111 billion in 2024.

As for the intelligence funds, the DBM allocated P5.917 billion, lower than the P8.267 billion for 2024.

“Kaya po siya bumaba [ang CIF to P10.285 billion from 2024's P12.378 billion], we just limited it to the departments and agencies na nangangailangan ng confidential and intel funds,” Pangandaman said in a press conference in Manila City.

(It got reduced because we just limited it to the departments and agencies that needed confidential and intel funds.)—LDF, GMA Integrated News