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Gov’t absorptive capacity: Sen. Win Gatchalian expresses qualm about the government's absorptive capacity and its ability to spend its budget to render basic services to Filipinos and contribute for the nationwide growth and development. According to Gatchalian, in 2023, the government unutilized appropriation is about P1.7-trillion or 20 percent of the total appropriations. “I know there's a drive to come up with tax measures, improved tax administration, improved tax collection, and there is also a move to rationalize our tax regime. But even though we rationalize and increase our expenditure in tax collection, government cannot spend it, that's the bottom line. So there's a big problem in terms of absorptive capacity and that is a major problem that we are seeing,” Gatchalian said during Wednesday’s hearing, August 14, 2024, of the Committee on Finance. “Are we doing anything to improve our spending capacity? This is a classic case of absorptive capacity and it's a good problem that we have money but it's a bad problem that we can’t spend it,” he added. (Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)