MANILA – Some P1.2 billion has been earmarked in the House-approved 2016 national budget for the transfer of the Supreme Court to The Fort in Taguig City.
The funding will be used to acquire new land and the transfer of the Supreme Court is expected to help decongest downtown Manila.
At present, the Supreme Court, which has more than 3,000 employees, holds offices in a building and lot owned by the University of the Philippines at the corner of Padre Faura Street and Taft Avenue in Ermita.
Aside from the funding, some P3.29 billion is also included in the budget to cover multi-year obligational authority which is necessary approval that precedes budget spending by a government agency or department, granted by Congress through appropriations.
The initial P122.7 million needed for the project management as well as the detailed architectural and engineering design of the new building is included in the 2016 budget.
Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno said in July that the high court hopes to move to The Fort by 2019. The entire Judiciary is getting an aggregate new funding of P26.7 billion next year, or 22% greater than its allocation this year and this includes P2.3 billion to pay for the operations of lower courts, some of which have become dependent on local governments for facilities.
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