Gov’t seeks more time for budget arguments
The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) requested a five-day extension of the deadline from the Supreme Court for filing its response regarding the petition challenging the legality of the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
“Although the draft of the said comment has already been finished, it is still undergoing further revision and/or correction before it can be filed,” the OSG said in a four-page motion filed on Friday, Feb. 21.
It noted that the motion was “not intended to delay the proceedings but solely due to the foregoing reasons.”
The high court on Feb. 4 issued a resolution requiring the House of Representatives, as represented by Speaker Martin Romualdez, the Senate, represented by Senate President Francis Escudero, and Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin to comment within 10 days from notice on the petition for certiorari and prohibition filed by allies of former President Rodrigo Duterte in late January.
The OSG received copies of the resolution on Feb. 12, and the response is due for filing on Feb. 22.
In their petition, former Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez, Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab and other petitioners claimed that the bicameral conference committee submitted a report containing blank items on the General Appropriations Bill, allegedly violating the 1987 Constitution.
They also questioned the nonallocation of funds for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. and prioritization of infrastructure over education budget, allegedly making the GAA “unconstitutional.”
The GAB is the proposed law detailing the government’s budget and allocations for agencies, programs, and projects. The bicameral report is the reconciled version of the budget bills from the House and Senate. Once signed by the President, the GAB becomes the GAA.
In an advisory issued on Feb. 18, the high court directed the respondents to submit the original copies of the 2025 GAB and the 2025 General Appropriations Enrolled Bill ahead of the preliminary conference on Feb. 28.
The documents will be submitted in person no later than 12 noon today (Feb. 24).
