By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos | Philippine News Agency
Malacañang on Tuesday expressed support for the plan to make the bicameral budget deliberations open to the public to make the process more transparent.
“We respect the independence of the Congress pero kapag po ang pinag-usapan ay pagsasapubliko ng anumang transaksiyon patungkol sa gobyerno mas maganda po talaga na maging transparent ang bawat galaw ng taumbayan,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing.
The Development Budget Coordination Committee has set the proposed 2026 national budget at P6.793 trillion.
The proposed budget for 2026 is equivalent to 22% of the gross domestic product and 7.4% higher compared to the 2025 national budget of P6.326 trillion.
Under the Constitution, the proposed national budget must be submitted to Congress within 30 days after the President’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman earlier said the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2026 is expected to be turned over to Congress two weeks after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. delivers his fourth SONA on July 28.
The NEP is the national government’s spending plan for the next fiscal year submitted to Congress. It becomes the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) when approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The GAB will then become the General Appropriations Act (GAA) once signed into law.
Asked what the government is expecting once the NEP is submitted to Congress, Castro said Marcos is looking forward to doing “what is good for the people and for the country.”
“Tandaan po natin, muli ang gusto po ng Pangulo ay mapaganda ang buhay ng bawat Pilipino, maging mas magaan at mabigyan nang magandang serbisyong medikal at pangkalusugan,” she said.
