House allocates P2 billion for Guimaras oil cleanup

The Philippine Star 08/30/2006

The House of Representatives allocated P2 billion last night for the cleanup of the oil spill in Guimaras and the rehabilitation of the affected areas.

The money is part of the P46-billion supplemental budget for 2006, which the House approved on second reading after some major revisions, including the creation of the P2-billion Guimaras Oil Spill Abatement Fund.

Ministerial third- and final-reading approval is expected today after the chamber prints clean copies of the supplemental budget bill.

The oil spill cleanup fund was proposed last week by the opposition bloc led by Minority Leader Francis Escudero and accepted by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, appropriations committee chairman.

It was presented last night during the deliberations on the supplemental budget by Deputy Minority Leaders Rolilo Golez and Rolex Suplico.

Salceda tried to haggle with his colleagues, offering only P1 billion for the fund, but Golez and Suplico reminded him of his commitment last week. He later agreed to the P2-billion allocation.

Upon suggestion by the minority, the House included in the budget bill the creation of a congressional oversight committee to oversee the use of the oil spill cleanup and rehabilitation fund.

The committee would be composed of five congressmen and five senators, including one representative each from the minority blocs in the Senate and the House.

Suplico earlier said the Guimaras oil spill was threatening neighboring areas, including his home province of Iloilo.

Aside from the Guimaras fund, which will be taken from several appropriations in the supplemental budget, the House took away P1 billion from the proposed P4.6 billion allocation for the Department of Agrarian Reform, giving the money to the Department of Education for the repair of school buildings.

Asked if the money would form part of the congressmen’s pork barrel, Salceda said, "To the extent that they can access it, yes."

Congressmen also gave the embattled Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) P14 million for the administration of new licensure tests for nursing graduates who took their board examinations in June.

The test results have been put in doubt in the wake of confirmations of leakages of test manuscripts. — Jess Diaz