Bills eye budget records on accessible blockchain
A House lawmaker on Wednesday filed a measure that seeks to place government budget records on a blockchain after President Marcos declared it a priority legislation to regain public trust amid the multibillion-peso flood control scandal.
Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima’s House Bill No. 6898 fully adopts Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino’s Citizen Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability (Cadena) bill that was passed on third and final reading in the Senate on Dec. 16.
If enacted into law, HB 6898 would mandate the establishment of an accessible and centralized mechanism for the disclosure of all government budget transactions, effectively addressing the institutional and political gaps that have long prevented Filipinos from accessing the information necessary to hold the government accountable.
Phases of budget cycle
All national government agencies, government-owned or -controlled corporations, and their subsidiaries would also be mandated to record and publish comprehensive data covering all phases of the budget cycle.
This covers documents such as the National Expenditure Program, Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing, General Appropriations Bill versions, Allotment Release Orders, procurement contracts and audit reports, among others.
The bill also mandates the creation of a National Budget Transparency and Accountability Council to oversee implementation, craft policies and standards, conduct audits, and ensure that the portal remains secure and accessible to the public.
‘Close glaring gap’
In seeking its passage, De Lima said she hoped to close “the glaring gap in our accountability mechanisms that allows public funds to become more vulnerable to graft while shielding negligent or corrupt officials from accountability.”
“Given the deep public mistrust brought forth by the unprecedented scale of recent corruption scandals, it becomes even more imperative to ensure complete and reliable disclosure of government transactions in order to encourage public participation in the country’s budget process and ultimately strengthen accountability,” she said.
Aquino’s Cadena bill was one of the four reform measures that Mr. Marcos identified as priorities for Congress, alongside the Independent People’s Commission/Independent Commission Against Infrastructure Corruption bill, the Anti-Political Dynasty Act, and the Party-list System Reform bill.
