We maintain our firm unity and unwavering stand in condemning corruption!
1. On the Supreme Court (SC) Ruling on the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF)
We applaud the Supreme Court’s decision declaring unconstitutional the Congressional Pork Barrel, the Presidential use of the Malampaya Funds and the President’s Social Fund.
However, we oppose mechanisms that continuously capacitate legislators to have sole discretion in realigning their pork funds into other items under various agencies of the Executive department.
In essence, the label “PDAF” is gone but the power of individual discretion of the legislators is retained together with the pork funds that are now in the hands of the President.
We condemn this kind of political maneuvering and call for the absolute dissolution of pork funds in the national budget.
We support the call to remove lump-sum discretionary spending and off budget items.
2. On the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP)
We believe that funds withdrawn in the middle of the fiscal year and funds taken from unreleased appropriations and unobligated allotments are illegal and unconstitutional.
The DAP violates Constitutional provisions expressing the Congress’ “power of the purse” since there is also no law that has been passed to legalize or authorize the DAP or the funds released under such mechanism since its conception in 2011.
We believe that the DAP is part of the President’s pork barrel where he has the sole discretion to where the funds will go. It has become a tool in which the executive can control and influence the legislature and other agencies contravening the entire system of checks and balances.
We support the Supreme Court petitions calling to strike down these acts violating our Constitution. We ask the Supreme Court to make a ruling against the DAP and not to treat it merely as moot and academic.
We propose that all unobligated and unreleased funds be returned to the General Fund in order to avoid the repeat of DAP.
3. Punish the Scammers
We demand that the respective judicial bodies be duty-bound to give justice to the people by immediately prosecuting those who are charged of using the people’s money for personal gain.
We demand the immediate resignation of public servants who are formally charged by the Department of Justice and the Ombudsman.
We demand the punishment of convicted pork barrel scammers and the return of their loot to the coffers of the people.
4. People’s Initiative to Abolish the Pork Barrel System
We reiterate our call for legislation through People’s Initiative as the MOST EFFECTIVE SYSTEMIC ALTERNATIVE to abolish the present pork barrel system. By conducting this People’s Initiative, we are voicing our commitment for transformation. With other national organizations, we move forward with renewed courage in standing for our rights and working for change.
MSGR. ROMUALDO G. KINTANAR
Convenor – Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System and Representatives from 30 member organizations of the Cebu Coalition during the Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System General Assembly on February 1, 2014 at the SPFY Function Room, Archbishop’s Residence Compound, Cebu City.
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