By Wilnard Bacelonia | Philippine News Agency
The bicameral conference committee on the proposed 2026 national budget suspended its second conference on Sunday night without acting on the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) request to restore portions of its proposed allocation reduced due to construction materials price data (CMPD) adjustments.
Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon raised the appeal during the second day of bicameral deliberations, following a heated exchange between Senate and House members earlier in the session that led to a motion by the House Committee on Appropriations Chairperson Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing for the DPWH chief to personally explain the agency’s position.
Dizon warned that the across-the-board application of CMPD-based reductions to roughly 10,000 projects in the General Appropriations Bill could render some contracts unimplementable, even as he stressed that the department was not seeking to increase prices or revive deleted items, including flood control projects.
“Ibalik po ulit para ma-implement ito ng tama kasi while it is true that the President told me and instructed me to bring down the prices of materials in order to eliminate overpricing, he also is very conscious of our desperate need to ramp up our infrastructure spending and implementation,” Dizon told lawmakers.
He also cited economic data showing slower growth in the previous quarter, which he attributed largely to cuts in public expenditure, particularly in infrastructure.
“Our fear is…that the cut made using our adjustment factors, as Senator Win correctly pointed out, across the board roughly 10,000 projects in the General Appropriations Bill may result inevitably in projects that will end up being unimplementable because of the way that they were applied to the various projects,” he said.
Dizon said under the CMPD special issuance, reductions are meant to reflect lower base material costs while keeping project scope and quantities unchanged, with savings incorporated at the contract level through updated programs of work.
He presented examples showing that in some cases, budget cuts exceeded actual CMPD-based savings, resulting in underfunded projects.
To address concerns over trust and accountability, Dizon said he personally issued a department order directing all regional directors and district engineers to strictly implement the lower pricing, warning that procurement would not be authorized and penalties could be imposed for noncompliance.
Despite Dizon’s presentation and assurances, the bicameral conference committee was suspended as requested by the delegates of the House of Representatives without deciding on the DPWH request.
The bicameral conference on the 2026 General Appropriations Act is set to meet again at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City 4 p.m. Monday (Dec. 15). (PNA)
