Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
MANILA, Philippines鈥揟he Commission on Elections鈥� (Comelec) proposed budget for 2015 will soar to P16.8 billion, or听six times its budget this year, an increase that Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto wants the agency to explain.
Recto on Wednesday said P3.76 billion听of the听Comelec听budget听will be used to buy 41,800 precinct count听optical scan听or PCOS听machines at a cost of听P90,000 each.
The听new PCOS machines, he said, will augment the 80,000 units听in the poll body鈥檚 inventory.
鈥淚n all, the听Comelec听is eyeing to buy P11.4- billion worth of assorted听new equipment,鈥� the senator said in a statement, quoting a听briefing paper by听the听Department of Budget and Management听(DBM) on the highlights of the proposed P2.6-trillion 2015 national budget.
On top of the听P11.43 billion for capital outlays,听Recto said another 2016 election-related expense frontloaded in the 2015 budget is P1.2 billion for听鈥減reparatory activities鈥� including voters鈥� registration.
He said the听Comelec听is targeting a four-percent increase in the number of registered voters which stood at 54,051,626 in August last year.
But pending the submission of the details of the mulled PCOS purchase,听the senator said he would withhold judgment on whether its multi-billion price tag was justified.
鈥淭here are听good and competent men in the听Comelec听like Chairman听Brillantes. We have to get their side and听also the views of other stakeholders who are likewise听well-meaning,鈥� he said.
鈥淏ut what I am interested听in knowing is if this will be a recurring expense, if this is what we will have to shell out every听time we听hold an election, which in this land is once听every听500 days,鈥� Recto said.
The senator noted that aside from national elections,听elections are also called for听Sangguniang听Barangay (SB)听and听Sangguniang听Kabataan听(SK) posts every three years.
On the last two alone, he said, 672,442 officials are elected, a chairman听for every听SB and SK in 42,028 barangays and听seven听council members for each SB and SK.
In addition, about 18,050 national and local posts are elected.
鈥淲e have听a 鈥榡ob fair鈥櫶齟very three years听to allow people to hire close to 700,000 officials and the manner of hiring them听is the one that鈥檚 expensive,鈥� Recto said.
鈥淲e can only hire less than a thousand doctors, probably a hundred PhD scientists and听about 10,000 policemen听every three years but we recruit elected officials in bulk,听by the hundreds of thousands during the same period,鈥� he said.
If the P16-billion cost to hold an election becomes a regular request every three years,听then Recto said, 鈥淭here is no harm in looking for other means on how to bring down the cost of administering elections in this country.
He said the final 2016 election听tab could also be higher since听the P16.8听billion was just the request of the听Comelec听for preparations听to be done听a year before.
鈥淭hat amount听does not include the funds required for election year proper,鈥� said the senator.
鈥淜ung听ganun听kalaki听ang听gastos,听maraming听magtatanong听kung听bakit听tayo听bibili听ng听ganun听kadaming听PCOS machine听na听gagamitin听lang听once every听three years听gayong听mas听kailangan听natin听ng dialysis machines o听X-ray machines,鈥� he added.
(If the expenses are that big, many people would ask why we would buy that many PCOS machines that we would use once every three years when we have a bigger need for dialysis machines or X-ray machines.)
Recto also noted that the听proposed P11.4听billion for new听Comelec听equipment听is 19 times bigger than the听proposed P592 million for NAIA expansion,听28 times of the budget for 398听new听DOH doctors in 2015,听two and half times the total senior citizens pension of some 739,000 elderly.
鈥淚t is听three and a half times of what our national vaccines and immunization budget is for next year, 11 times听bigger听than the Community Mortgage Program budget, and 22 times听bigger than the Quick Reaction Fund of听the Department of Agriculture for calamities,鈥� he said.
But Recto said听he was not听blaming the Comelec.
鈥淧robably what is at fault here听is that we have so many听government units, which create many positions up听for grabs,听which invite many candidates,听who in turn will be chosen by a large voting base,鈥� he said.
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