Ejercito asks House: Don’t recall the approved 2027 budget

MANILA, Philippines — Senate Finance chairperson JV Ejercito on Thursday appealed to the House of Representatives not to recall its version of the 2027 House General Appropriations Bill (HGAB).

This comes after lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc urged the House to recall its approval of the P7.2-trillion budget measure.

“I’m appealing because I’m worried about that. If that’s done… most likely…we won’t be able to pass the budget by year-end,” Ejercito said in an interview.

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Instead, Ejercito hoped that the disagreeing provisions in the Senate and House versions of the 2027 budget would be resolved through the bicameral conference committee.

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“I appeal, I hope we can fix this on Bicam just in case… We are transparent, and everything will be televised,” he added.

READ: Solons to House: Recall approved 2027 budget bill declared unconstitutional

Ejercito also pointed out that several upcoming events may get in the way of passing the national budget on time if the House chooses to recall its GAB.

The impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte is scheduled to continue on November 9, while work is suspended from November 16 to 18 in lieu of the 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit and Related Summits.

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The Makabayan bloc called for the recall of the approved budget after the Supreme Court declared key provisions of the 2024, 2025, and 2026 General Appropriations Acts unconstitutional.

According to ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio, the same provisions that the SC declared unconstitutional in previous budgets “can be found in the [2027] proposed budget.”

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The bloc is among the 13 House members who voted against the passage of the 2027 GAB on third and final reading. /mcm