A LEFT-LEANING lawmaker on Monday criticized the 90-percent cut in the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s capital outlay, saying that would greatly affect the most vulnerable sectors.
“This massive budget cut of almost 90 percent in the CO [capital outlay] will greatly affect the direct services offered by the DSWD to the vulnerable sectors such as senior citizens, children, people with disability, women, solo parents, homeless families and disaster victims,” Rep. Antonio Tinio said.
He made his statement even as Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial on Monday earned the ire of lawmakers over the cuts in the budgets of 49 public hospitals.
During the House of Representatives’ deliberations on the Department of Health P103.6- billion budget for 2018, Rep. Carlos Zarate said P1.488 billion was slashed from the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses of the 49 public hospitals.
“It was the President’s directive to take care of the poor and Secretary Ubial had said that the DoH would epitomize the President’s tagline of malasakit,” Zarate said.
He [Duterte] had been critical of people lining up outside hospitals, camping at the gates of hospitals even before the day breaks just to get medical attention.
Tinio said the capital outlay that the Department of Budget and Management included in the proposed budget of Social Welfare was only P30.9 million, far below the P362.3 million in the 2017 budget or P3.4 billion that Social Welfare had requested from the Budget Department during the budget call.
Tinio said Social Welfare’s infrastructure outlay of the previous years ranged from P238.8 million in 2014 to P909.4 million in 2016.
He said the budget cut would affect Social Welfare’s services to the vulnerable sectors.
For instance, Tinio said, a capital outlay of P30.9 million would not enable Social Welfare to repair the dilapidated centers and homes for the elderly and build more of those institutions.
“Repair and construction of these centers and homes are necessary, considering that there are only 71 nationwide and not all provinces, municipalities and cities have them, according to the DSWD,” Tinio said.
“This capital outlay cannot build and maintain the public orphanages or child centers and other social welfare institutions.”