- Dr. Tony Leachon
The ₱6.352-trillion national budget for 2025, signed on Rizal Day, was meant to avert a reenacted budget and ensure continuity of government programs. Instead, it has become a symbol of corruption, misplaced priorities, and betrayal of public trust.
At the center of this controversy are three intertwined issues: the 2024 transfer of ₱89.9 billion in PhilHealth funds back to the national treasury, the zero subsidy for PhilHealth in the 2025 budget, and the ghost flood control projects that consumed billions while leaving communities vulnerable.
The PhilHealth Fund Transfer and Zero Subsidy
In 2024, PhilHealth was compelled to remit ₱89.9 billion in unused subsidies to the national treasury. Finance Secretary Ralph Recto defended the move as legal compliance with congressional directives, and the Solicitor General later backed the transfer. Yet critics saw it as a diversion of funds meant for universal health care.
The consequences became stark in the 2025 budget: PhilHealth received zero subsidy, despite the Universal Health Care Act’s mandate that sin tax revenues should sustain health coverage. This decision left millions of Filipinos without affordable medical protection, forcing families to shoulder catastrophic out-of-pocket expenses. The defunding of PhilHealth was widely condemned as a betrayal of public trust, prioritizing fiscal maneuvering and political patronage over the health of citizens.
Flood Control Projects
While health care was gutted, flood control allocations soared. The DPWH received ₱289 billion in additional funds, bringing its total budget to ₱1.1 trillion. Investigations later revealed 421 ghost projects and kickbacks estimated at 30–40% of project costs. These schemes drained resources while leaving flood-prone communities defenseless.
The juxtaposition is stark: billions diverted from health care, billions wasted on ghost infrastructure. Together, these decisions eroded confidence in governance and reinforced the narrative of a budget “crafted like a thief in the night.”
The Fate of Key Economic Managers
• Lucas Bersamin (Executive Secretary during deliberations): Bersamin was central to budget reviews with the President in late 2024. By November 2025, he resigned amid the flood control scandal, denying corruption involvement but acknowledging delicadeza.
• Manny Bonoan (DPWH Secretary): Bonoan oversaw the flood control allocations. In late 2025, he left for the United States, officially to accompany his wife for medical treatment. His departure drew scrutiny, as investigators expanded probes into ghost projects under his watch.
• Amenah Pangandaman (DBM Secretary): Pangandaman’s office was directly implicated in the flood control anomaly. In November 2025, she resigned alongside Bersamin, with Malacañang confirming that both stepped down to allow investigations to proceed.
• Ralph Recto (Finance Secretary → Executive Secretary): Recto orchestrated the ₱89.9 billion PhilHealth fund transfer and defended the zero subsidy in the 2025 budget. Despite public outrage, he was promoted to Executive Secretary, the so-called “Little President.”
His elevation is widely seen as confirmation that President Marcos himself directed Recto to carry out the controversial fund transfers, cementing the perception that the betrayal of public trust was not incidental but deliberate.
Conclusion
The ₱89.9 billion PhilHealth fund transfer, the zero subsidy for PhilHealth, the ghost flood control projects, and the promotion of Recto despite his role in the controversy represent not just financial mismanagement but a profound betrayal of public trust.
Health care was defunded, infrastructure was corrupted, and the very officials who shaped the budget are now either sidelined, abroad, or promoted despite scandal.
The legacy of the 2025 budget will not be its size, but its failures—ghost projects, gutted health care, and leaders who presided over a system that robbed citizens of both safety and health. The promotion of Recto, sanctioned by BBM himself, underscores that the betrayal was not only tolerated but institutionalized at the highest level of government.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2018334/marcos-to-sign-p6-352-t-2025-budget-on-rizal-day/amp
Tony Leachon
No comments:
Post a Comment