DepEd loses another P5B for computerization program in Marcos’ budget veto

December 31, 2024 | 5:59pm

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed the P6.326-trillion national budget for 2025, but vetoed some items, including education-related programs under the unprogrammed appropriations.

While Marcos did not touch the bicam report’s P1.056 trillion budget for the education sector, the breakdown of the P168.241 billion in vetoed line items under the unprogrammed appropriations reveals cuts to education-related programs.

This includes a P5 billion reduction from the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Computerization Program. 

Education Secretary Sonny Angara and teacher groups have previously expressed disappointment over the Congress-approved P10 billion budget cut to the program.

An additional P5 billion cut brings the total reduction to P15 billion for this initiative, which aims to provide schools with essential digital resources and equipment for learning and teaching.

Congress defended the P10-billion budget cut, saying DepEd had a low utilization rate and delayed procurement during Vice President Sara Duterte’s term as the agency’s secretary. 

On top of the deduction made to the computerization program, Marcos also vetoed P76.991 billion in unprogrammed funds for “priority social programs, including those for health, social welfare and development, higher education, technical and vocational education, and other social programs.”

Unprogrammed funds are reserved for the government’s priority programs and can only be accessed once revenue targets are met.

However, these funds have also been criticized as a form of “pork barrel,” as they allow the executive to allocate money to programs it deems necessary.

Other cuts under the standby funds include P1 billion for the social pension for indigent senior citizens and P2 billion for public health emergency benefits and allowances for healthcare and non-healthcare workers. 

The P50 billion unprogrammed funds for the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), which seeks to provide financial assistance to improve health and education for poor households raising children, was also removed.

Infra budget still higher than education’s 

After Congress faced criticism for slashing DepEd’s proposed 2025 budget while boosting funding for infrastructure, Marcos vowed to approve a budget that prioritizes the education sector, following the Constitution.

When he signed the revised General Appropriations Bill (GAB) on Monday, December 30, the vetoed line items allowed the overall budget for education to exceed that of the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) budget.

The education sector’s 2025 budget, which includes funding for all education-related agencies even beyond DepEd, totals P1.056 trillion, while the DPWH’s budget stands at P1.008 trillion.

This represents a difference of around P48 billion, and unlike Congress, the executive cannot move around funds. It can only veto or completely delete line items or budgets for specific projects.

“What we are referring to as the budget of DepEd remains the same. However, the increase we’re talking about is in the education sector, which includes more than just the DepEd. It also covers CHED, which is still part of education, TESDA and our SUCs. There are many government agencies whose mandates also fall under education, which is why the overall allocation increased,” Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said in a briefing on Monday. 

The P26.066 billion worth of projects removed from the DPWH already represents 54% of the difference. This does not include the cuts in other infrastructure-related projects under the unprogrammed funds. 

Civil society groups, finance experts and some minority lawmakers argued that the executive appeared to reduce DPWH’s budget to make it seem like the education sector received the largest share.

However, they noted that the bicam report’s breakdown remains unclear on whether education truly surpassed DPWH in budget allocation.

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Critics emphasized that, despite the veto message showing a reduced DPWH budget, the combined infrastructure budget still exceeds that of the education sector.

Sonny Africa, executive director of economic think tank IBON Foundation, said on Monday that the DPWH is not the sole agency with infrastructure projects. The Department of Transportation (DOTr), which was given a P123.7 billion budget for 2025, also has its flagship projects.

The combined budgets of the DPWH and DOTr, totaling around P1.132 trillion, would then surpass the education sector’s budget by around P76 billion.

Rep. France Castro (ACT Teachers’ Partylist) said in a statement on Tuesday, December 31, that Marcos’ veto message “is pure deception” to conceal the pullbacks made to the education sector’s budget. 

The executive has provided Congress with copies of the signed 2025 national budget, officially known as Republic Act 12116, which will be implemented on Jan. 1, 2025.