FILE PHOTO: Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin. Photo from the House of Representatives
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said it is 鈥渢oo soon to comment鈥� on the petition filed against the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) at the Supreme Court (SC).
鈥淭oo soon to comment. I have yet to be served. Hence, I have not seen the contents. After that, the comment will be through the Sol Gen,鈥� he told reporters on Tuesday when asked for his stance on the matter.
READ: Bersamin on Ungab鈥檚 plan to challenge budget in SC: We can鈥檛 stop him
The petition, filed by Davao Representative Isidro Ungab, former Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez, and others, seeks to challenge the constitutionality of the 2025 national budget over alleged blank items in the bicameral conference committee report.
Bersamin, along with House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Senate President Francis 鈥淐hiz鈥� Escudero, are the petition鈥檚 respondents.
In a separate message to reporters, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said they will comment on the petition if they are directed by the SC to do so.
鈥淚n the meantime, the validity, regularity, and constitutionality of the 2025 GAA is legally presumed,鈥� Guevarra also said.
Blank items in 2025 GAA
READ: Quimbo: Blanks in 2025 budget only for final computation
In an ambush interview on Monday, Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo clarified that the blanks in the bicam report were only for the final computation of the amendments.
The lawmaker reiterated that the GAA was legal as the allocations on the then-proposed budget had already been decided by the bicam before the House of Representatives and the Senate ratified the report.
鈥淵es, so not withstanding any typographical errors or any adjustments that are needed as a result of amendments, the technical staff of both the House and Senate were authorized to make all of these necessary corrections,鈥� Stella said in a mix of English and Filipino when asked about the alleged blanks in the budget.
鈥淎nd just to clarify or to reiterate at the point of signing by the bicam members, all the appropriations amounts have already been decided upon,鈥� she said.
鈥淭his means all the corrections of our technical staff, these are just ministerial only. This means this is just merely calculator activity only, they no longer have discretion because all of these are decided by the bicam members at the point of signing,鈥� she added in Filipino.
The issue stemmed after Ungab raised concerns about the blank items in the bicam report in a televised interview.
Copies of the report showed that the blanks were mostly with the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Agrarian Reform programs, like allocations for the National Irrigation Authority and the National Food Authority.
READ: DBM clears up budget confusion, confirms signed GAA is complete
The Department of Budget and Management already issued a statement clarifying that while there may be blank items in the bicam report, the GAA signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. did not contain any missing items.