CRIMINAL complaints will be filed against House Speaker Martin Romualdez and two other lawmakers over the alleged P241 billion worth of insertions in the 2025 General Appropriations Bill.
Former House speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, senatorial aspirant Atty. Jimmy Bondoc (PDP) Atty. Raul Lambino, Atty. Ferdinand Topacio, and the Citizens Crime Watch will submit the complaint for falsification of legislative documents to the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office on Monday, Feb. 10, 2025.
The basis for the complaint was the blank entries in the ratified bicameral conference committee report, which became the basis for the enrolled 2025 GAB.
Alvarez told reporters that they were shocked when they found multiple blank entries in the bicam report but these were already filled out in the 2025 GAB that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed.
“Ewan ko kung matatawag na typographical error ‘yan o grammatical error. Napakalaki po ng halaga, P241 billion (I don’t know if you can still consider it as a typographical or grammatical error; P241 billion is a significant amount),” he added.
Atty. Lambino, Partido Demokratikong Pilipino International Affairs Committee head, said the newly minted appropriations committee chair, Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo, already admitted the blank items in the bicam report.
Quimbo also said the technical working group was authorized to fill the blanks, a task she considered “ministerial.”
Lambino said the TWG must release the minutes of the proceedings for transparency’s sake.
“Kailangan maimbestigahan ang TWG. Gumawa sila ng affidavit na sila ang nag-fill out sa mga blank ng budget na pirmado pa ng members (The TWG must be investigated. They should make a duly signed affidavit stating they filled out the blanks in the budget),” Lambino said.
For his part, Atty. Bondoc said they might be accused of politicking but the people should not lose sight of the fact that a crime has been committed. He said they are only trying to right a wrong and hold those responsible accountable.
Former President Rodrigo Duterte is the chair of PDP, which also counts his son, Mayor Sebastian Duterte, as its vice chair.
SC tackles 2025 budget
The Supreme Court (SC) has taken up a petition challenging the constitutionality of the 2025 national budget, officially known as Republic Act No. 12116 or the General Appropriations Act of Fiscal Year 2025 (GAA).
In a press briefer released on Feb. 4, 2025, the SC announced that it had tackled the petition filed by Victor D. Rodriguez, Isidro T. Ungab, Rogelio A. Mendoza, and others. The petitioners are contesting the legality of the GAA, raising several key points.
They argue that the 2025 budget fails to allocate the mandatory funding required for PhilHealth, the country’s public health insurance system.
Furthermore, they claim that appropriations exceed the recommendations submitted by the President, violating established budgetary procedures.
The petitioners also assert that the GAA allocates the largest portion of funds to infrastructure projects, surpassing the allocation for education, which they argue is unconstitutional.
Finally, they allege that the Bicameral Committee Report on the General Appropriations Bill contained blank items, rendering the budget process flawed.
The respondents in the case include the House of Representatives, represented by Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, and the Senate, represented by Senate President Francis Escudero and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.
The Supreme Court has directed the respondents to submit their comments on the petition within a non-extendible period of 10 days from receipt of the notice.
Moreover, a copy of the pleadings related to the case can be accessed on the Supreme Court’s website in the Public Pleadings section.
The case is expected to have far-reaching implications for government spending and national priorities in the coming fiscal year.
