Solon, other petitioners as Supreme Court to nullify 2025 GAA
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. signs the P6.326-trillion national budget for 2025 in a ceremony in Malacañang on Dec. 30, 2024 (INQUIRER / MARIANNE BERMUDEZ)
MANILA, Philippines – A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court (SC) to declare as unconstitutional Republic Act 12116 or the General Appropriations Act of 2025.
The petition, filed by Davao Representative Isidro Ungab and former executive secretary Vic Rodriguez raised several violations of the Constitution with the approval of the 2025 budget including the supposed blank items in the bicameral conference committee report of the spending plan.
The petitioners said the Bicameral Committee Report showed several blanks particularly the budget allocations for the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), Department of Agriculture and the Philippine Coconut Authority.
“Here, the Bicameral Conference Committee not only made several amendments to the 2025 General Appropriations Bill but left blanks in their report…which is very dubious and dangerous as the budgets for the said offices and programs remain to be undetermined,” read the petition.
The petitioners pointed out that while it is true that the Bicameral Conference Committee has the power to reconcile the Senate and the House of Representatives’ version, “it is prohibited from amending provisions without clearly stating the version to which it should be amended to.”
Article continues after this advertisement“Such irregularity is a blatant violation of the constitution which should not be condoned,” petitioners pointed out.
Article continues after this advertisementIn this case, they said “the Bicameral Conference Committee committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess jurisdiction when it signed the committee report on 2025 National Budget filled with blanks.”
Another violation of the Constitution committed, according to the petitioners, is failure to provide the education sector the highest budget allocation.
Instead, they said non-education-related agencies received the highest budget allocation, particularly the infrastructure sector under the Department of Public Works and Highways.
Named as respondents in the petition were the House of Representatives headed by Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Senate of the Philippines represented by Senate President Francis Escudero and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.
Other petitioners are Rogelio Mendoza, Benito Ching, Redemberto Villanueva, Roseller dela Peña, Santos Catuba and Dominic Solis, being taxpayers and members of Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
