Zubiri

Senate approves P5.2T budget

November 24, 2022 PS Jun M. Sarmiento 355 views

SENATE President Juan Miguel “Migz” F. Zubiri banged the gavel after the chamber voted to approve on third and final reading the P5.268 trillion national budget for 2023.

With 21 affirmative votes, no negative vote and no abstention, the chamber passed House Bill No. 4488 under Committee Report No. 10 or the General Appropriations Act of 2023 Wednesday, November 23, 2022.

Zubiri congratulated Sen. Sonny Angara, chairperson of the Committee on Finance, and all the vice chairpersons for steering the passage of the 2023 budget.

Zubiri also expressed his appreciation to Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III and Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros for voting in the affirmative.

Sen. Sonny Angara, during the plenary session assured that the advocacies and programs of the present administration are still in place despite several suggested amendments from his colleagues to the proposed P5.268 trillion 2023 national budget.

Angara, chairperson of the Committee on Finance, said additional fundings were provided for the following departments: education still has the highest budgetary support among the government agencies; agriculture to prioritize food security, health for additional regional hospitals, specialty hospitals and other health facilities; labor and employment for the TUPAD program; tourism to promote tourism industry; public works and highways for the construction and rehabilitation of bridges and roads; energy for the energy sector, among others.

“With the inputs and support of most if not all of our colleagues here in the Senate, we have been able to keep this budget aligned with the objectives and the agenda outlined in the Medium Term Fiscal Framework or MTFF. Let this be a sign of our broad support to the goal set by the Marcos administration and our principled commitment to promoting a unified government for the betterment of our people,” Angara stressed.

He further stated that his committee submitted a more complete report with the breakdown of all amendments for the body’s consideration. The Senate approved the 2023 national budget on third and final reading with 21 affirmative votes, zero negative vote, and zero abstention.