By Charissa Luci in Manila Bulletin

 

Has the government scrapped the Bangsamoro entity and the proposed Charter change (Cha-cha)?

 

This cropped up yesterday after Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. revealed that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) junked the budgets proposed by the poll body for the conduct of Cha-cha and plebiscite for the Bangsamoro.

 

Likewise removed from the proposed Comelec budget was the P89.6-million outlay for overseas absentee voting.

 

“When we submitted the P36-billion (Comelec) budget, there were several special projects that we supposed to undertake. We are giving a budget for the possible amendment of the Constitution, a plebiscite, we put there about P7 billion and we also put certain amount for the preparation of the Bangsamoro plebiscite as we anticipate that something will happen in 2015. All of these were slashed and taken out,” Brillantes told the House Committee on Appropriations.

 

Brillantes said the P7 billion will be used for the execution of the Charter change through Constitutional Convention (Con-Con), which would no longer be feasible since it “needs more time” compared to Constituent Assembly (Con-Ass) as a mode of amending the Constitution.

 

Under Con-Con, delegates will be elected to study and amend the Constitution. A plebiscite shall also be conducted wherein people would decide on the fate of the amendments approved by the Con-Con delegates.

 

“It is not too late for the Cha-cha, depending on how to amend it. Basta may budget din it can be done,” Brillantes said.

 

“Kaya nga nag-propose kami ng P7 -billion budget pero tinanggal ng DBM. Ibig sabihin hindi rin sila interested sa Cha-cha (That’s why we proposed a P7-billion budget but DBM scrapped it. This means they are not interested with Cha-cha),” he added.

 

BUDGET FOR BANGSAMORO IMPLEMENTATION ALLOTTED

 

While the budget for the Bangsamoro plebiscite was scrapped, the DBM allocated P2.7 billion for the implementation of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

 

Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad explained they earmarked an allocation since they anticipate the enactment of the BBL, which calls for the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

 

He said they don’t want to “scramble” to meet the appropriation requirements of the law.

 

Brillantes told lawmakers that Congress has to approve a joint resolution to call for a plebiscite for Cha-cha.

 

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., who filed the economic Cha-cha resolution, said he will file a resolution to ensure that the plebiscite would be conducted, alongside with the 2016 national and local elections.

 

“If that’s the only way, then we will do it [filing the resolution],” he said. “But no immediate need to do it,” Belmonte added.

 

Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares proposed that the P7 billion should be restored for people’s initiative referendum to totally scrap all forms of pork barrel system.

 

The progressive solon finds as suspicious the Executive’s scrapping of the Cha-cha budget, explaining that if it really wants to push for constitutional amendments, Congress can approve a supplemental budget for the Cha-cha.

 

“May I propose that the P7-billion fund be restored for people initiatives’ referendum to totally scrap the pork barrel system,” Colmenares said.

 

Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab, chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, said the panel cannot adopt Colmenares’ proposal, which was supported by Brillantes, explaining that they are “still at the budget briefing stage.”

 

“The GAB (General Appropriations Bill) is not yet passed on first reading. We will take note of your suggestion,” he said.

 

He said Colmenares could introduce his amendments when the proposed P2.606-trillion national budget reaches the plenary.

 

OVERSEAS VOTING BUDGET ALSO SCRAPPED

 

The scrapping of the overseas absentee voting budget prompted Akbayan party-list Rep. Walden Bello to ask Davao Rep. Isidro Ungab, chairman of the panel, to ensure the retention of the absentee voting budget.

 

“I cannot see any reasonable excuse for this deletion from the 2015 budget. There is an existing law for overseas absentee voting and it needs funds to be implemented. Furthermore, the 2016 elections are less than two years away,” he said.

 

“If the DBM insists on this cut, it will have to answer to our OFWs,” Bello added.

 

During the budget hearing, Brillantes also clarified that Malacañang “has nothing to do” with the Comelec’s decision to use mix of old and new machines for the 2016 polls.

 

He said the Comelec Advisory Council (CAC), mostly composed of private companies and information technology experts, recommended that that multiple or mixed technologies be used for the 2016 elections.

 

Upon the CAC recommendation, the Comelec en banc decided that the PCOS machines and a second voting technology – the Optical Mark Reader (OMR) system and the Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) – will be used in 2016.

 

Colmenares protested the use of mixed automated election system (AES), saying it “would only complicate” the conduct of the 2016 pills.

 

“The moment na ang PCOS machines ay mag-breakdown  parang MRT lang, the whole election loses credibility. Mabuti kung hindi ito presidential elections,” he said.

 

Brillantes defended the Comelec en banc’s decision, saying that the existing 80,000 PCOS machines they used during 2010 and 2013 elections are still in good condition, reliable and can be used for the 2016 polls.

 

He noted that the cost of the new machines will be P3.7 billion.

 

He said they will use the old PCOS and will seek additional 41,800 new machines for the 2016 presidential elections.

 

Comelec proposed P11 billion for the the 2016 elections preparation, including the procurement new PCOS machines.