Intel, confidential funds for Office of President pegged at P2.5B in proposed 2017 budget

From InterAksyon (Aug 23): Intel, confidential funds for Office of President pegged at P2.5B in proposed 2017 budget



President Rodrigo Duterte has amply provided his office funds to wield in the fight against drugs and crimes, raising its intelligence and confidential funds to P2.5 billion in the proposed budget for 2017.
The P2.5 billion – P1.25 billion each for intelligence and confidential fund – was lodged in the Office of the President under next year’s appropriation.

The amount is part of the P3.66 billion total appropriation for the confidential fund (P1.663 billion) and intelligence fund (P2.006 billion) of all departments.

President Duterte’s intelligence and confidential funds represented a big leap from the budget of his predecessor, former President Benigno Aquino III, who only had a combined P500 million budget for 2016 (P250 million each in confidential and intelligence fund).

The budget watchdog Social Watch Philippines earlier cautioned the public to be vigilant in keeping watch over how these funds are spent.  It said it was not aware how the Commission on Audit checks how these funds are utilized by the Office of the President and various agencies.

According to the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing of the 2017 budget, the recipients of the confidential and intelligence funds are:

*Office of the President
Confidential Fund      P1,663,553,000
Intelligence Fund        P2,006,226,000
*Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Confidential Fund      P13,950,000
*Department of Finance
Confidential Fund      P30,500,000
*Department of Interior and Local Government
Confidential Fund      P20,600,000
Intelligence Fund        P306,029,000
*Department of Information and Communications Technology
Confidential Fund      P600,000
*Department of Justice
Confidential Fund      P260,983,000
*Department of National Defense
Confidential Fund      P23,000,000
Intelligence Fund        P346,397,000
*Department of Tourism
Confidential Fund      P11,500,000
*Anti-Money Laundering Council
Confidential Fund      P5,000,000
*Energy Regulatory Commission
Confidential Fund      P15,000,000
*National Intelligence Coordinating Agency
Confidential Fund      P1,000,000
Intelligence Fund        P20,200,000
*Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency
Intelligence Fund        P73,600,000
*Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
Confidential Fund      P420,000
*Commission on Audit
Confidential Fund      P10,000,000
*Office of the Ombudsman
Confidential Fund      P20,000,000
*Commission on Human Rights
Confidential Fund      P1,000,000

Section 63 of the General Provisions of the proposed 2017 budget states that “No appropriations authorized in this Act shall be released or disbursed for intelligence activities, including amounts sourced from savings, unless approved by the President of the Philippines, or specifically identified and authorized as intelligence fund in this Act.  Agencies utilizing intelligence funds shall submit to the President of the Philippines a quarterly report on the accomplishment in the use of said funds.”

Section 64, meanwhile, cited that “Confidential funds authorized in this Act shall be released or disbursed only upon approval of the Department Secretary concerned.  Agencies utilizing confidential funds shall submit to the President of the Philippines and both Houses of Congress a quarterly report on the accomplishment on the use of said funds.”

“Confidential expenses refer to those related to surveillance activities in civilian government agencies that are intended to support the mandate or operations of the agency,” it added.

http://interaksyon.com/article/131720/intel-confidential-funds-for-office-of-president-pegged-at-p2-5b-in-proposed-2017-budget