Pangilinan thanks colleagues for OK of OVP 2021 budget in 'fastest hearing of the year'

LIBERAL Party President Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan thanked his colleagues for the approval of the proposed augmentation of the budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) after Vice President Leni Robredo herself faced the Senate Sub-Committee on Finance hearing on Wednesday.

Presenting the accomplishments of her office through their flagship program Angat Buhay, Robredo detailed her office's efforts to help our countrymen during the COVID-19 crisis.

"In government, if you see a functioning, working, effective agency you should give them more so that they will be even more effective. The opposite of course Is true with the ineffective, incompetent agencies. Where you put money, it's like throwing good money after bad. But in this case, it isn't so," Pangilinan said in the hearing.

The OVP budget was slashed by over P44 million in the Department of Budget and Management's proposed National Expenditure Program. The OVP requested for P724 million in budget but the DBM submitted only P679 million in its proposal to Congress.

Robredo said that bulk of the removed amount was to replace six vehicles of the OVP that are no longer usable, as well as for research.

The members of the Senate present, led by the Minority Leader Frank Drilon, unanimously moved to restore the OVP's budget request in what Senator Sonny Angara said was the "fastest committee hearing of the year."

"We support the manifestation of the minority leader to restore that particular item, and that based on the COA reports and based on the report of the Vice President, clearly, these resources are put to good use and will definitely go a long way and will not go to waste as the track record and the COA reports have shown," said Pangilinan.

Senators Nancy Binay, Bong Revilla, and Lito Lapid also showed their support for the restoration of the OVP budget to what it submitted to DBM.