The House of Representatives inserted nearly ₱190 billion worth of infrastructure projects into its proposed 2027 national budget without publicly accessible supporting documents, prompting a watchdog to warn of a potential scandal similar to the flood-control controversy.
During a Senate hearing on Oct. 26, People’s Budget Coalition co-convenor Kenneth Isaiah Abante said the group’s review found nearly 7,000 projects added by the House without the required attachments and documentation officially mandated for congressional budget and infrastructure proposals.
“Halos 7,000 projects worth ₱190 billion ang in-insert ng House na walang published project attachments. Sabi nga po namin sa mga nakaraang hearing, ang warning po namin sa publiko ay posibleng magkaroon ulit tayo ng flood control scandal sa ibang ahensya if we allow the House budget to pass as is,” he said.
“This is the same modus operandi of the insertions of Speaker Martin Romualdez and Congressman Zaldy Co na nagdala po sa atin sa sitwasyong ito. Nag-insert ng proyektong walang batayang dokumento.”
The PBC has flagged more than ₱1 trillion in questionable allocations in the House-approved 2027 national budget. Of this amount, the coalition identified ₱695 billion in what it called “hard pork” for infrastructure, ₱210 billion in “soft pork” for assistance programs and ₱112 billion in “shadow pork” through unprogrammed appropriations.
Among the districts identified in the coalition’s review, Ilocos Norte’s 1st District, represented by House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos, topped the watchdog’s list with 405 Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects valued at ₱4.37 billion.
DPWH allocations associated with Isabela’s 6th District, represented by Speaker Faustino Dy III, and the province’s 4th District, represented by Rep. Joseph Tan, covered 147 projects worth a combined ₱1.68 billion.
Nueva Ecija’s 1st District, represented by House Appropriations Committee Chair Mikaela Suansing, shared 107 DPWH projects worth ₱1.35 billion with the province’s 2nd District. In Batangas, the district engineering office covering areas linked to the 2nd and 5th districts recorded 77 projects totaling ₱1.31 billion. The 2nd District is represented by Rep. Gerville Luistro.
The findings emerged days after the Supreme Court declared key provisions of the 2024, 2025 and 2026 General Appropriations Acts unconstitutional over unauthorized congressional increases to unprogrammed standby funds and certain special accounts.
