Solon eyes cut in NTF-ELCAC 2025 budget

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC)’s proposed P7.8 billion appropriations for 2025 should be reduced due to the low utilization of its budget, Kabataan party-list lawmaker Raoul Manuel said Monday.

Manuel questioned the amount that NTF-ELCAC was asking for next year when it hardly disbursed its P2.2 billion budget for Barangay Development Program (BDP) in 2024.

“Zero [percent] pa po yung accomplishment for this year ng BDP ng NTF-ELCAC. Kung ganito na nga this year, sobrang unjustified na ang gusto nito ay almost four times na P7.8 billion. Dapat talaga hindi na muna pondohan for 2025 itong BDP, lalo na’t nasa isang positive step na rin naman ‘yung ginawa natin sa committee of appropriations," Manuel said on Monday's plenary discussions of the budget.

(NTF-ELCAC has zero accomplishments this year of its BDP.  If this is the case, then it is unjustified for the body to ask for a budget four times bigger.)

The proposed new appropriations targets to give P7.8 million each to the 780 barangays cleared of communist insurgency.

House appropriations panel senior vice chairperson Marikina Representative Stella Quimbo confirmed Manuel’s statement by citing Department of Budget and Management (DBM) records showing that while 98.96% of NTF-ELCAC’s 2024 budget has been released, 692 of its BDPs remain in the-pre-procurement stage with less than four months left in the year.

Under the jurisdiction of the DBM, a request for a budget from the NTF-ELCAC would trigger its release from the Budget department.

“Iyong fund utilization ay mababang-mababa pa so far. 173 projects are under procurement and 20 projects are ongoing (Its fund utilization is really low),” said Quimbo, designated DBM budget sponsor.

“Tama po ang observation ng ating kagalang-galang na Congressman Raoul Manuel na medyo may kabagalan nga ang kanilang pag-implement,” Quimbo added.

(Our colleague made the right observation that the task force's implementation has been slow.)

“Kung patuloy itong susuportahan ng kapulungan na ito, the pet project of the past administration can actually become like a living monster of the present administration,” Manuel said.

GMA News Online reached out to NTF-ELCAC spokesperson and National Security Council Assistant Director Jonathan Malaya for comments and will post them as soon as available.

‘Multi-fold’ 

NTF-ELCAC spokesperson and National Security Council Assistant Director Jonathan Malaya said the reason behind the task force’s delayed projects is “multi-fold.”

Malaya said that funds are directly released by the DBM to the LGUs which handle the implementation of the programs.

“Procurement of infrastructure projects under RA 9184 takes time therefore many projects are still complying with procurement laws, rules and regulations otherwise they will be charged before the Ombudsman,” he told GMA News Online. 

“These projects are in isolated areas in mountains and islands. There are challenges in implementation in far flung areas. But the DILG which oversees the LGUs are already closely monitoring the LGUs to ensure the projects move as quickly as possible,” Malaya added. 

Further, Malaya said the Special Allotment Release Order and the Notice of Cash Allocation from the DBM was only released last May to July. —LDF/RF, GMA Integrated News