The House Committee on Appropriations chaired by Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles is all set to scrutinize the proposed P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019, themed “Building a Bright Future for the Philippines and Its People.”

The committee has already completed its calendar for the hearings on the budget proposals of the different government agencies and departments scheduled from July 31 to August 29. The budget hearings will kick off on Tuesday with a briefing by the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), the inter-agency body that determines the overall economic targets, expenditure levels, and sources of funds.

The agencies tabled for the last day of budget hearings on Aug. 29 are the Office of the President (OP), Office of the Vice President (OVP), and the Department of National Defense (DND).

Nograles said the House is always ready to do its mandated duty to review and scrutinize the annual national budget and ensure its timely passage for the benefit of the entire nation.

“As before, the House of Representatives is always prepared to answer the President and the Constitution’s call to pass the national budget on time. It is always conscious of its mandate to approve next year’s budget in order not to hamper the delivery of basic services to the Filipino people,” said Nograles.

He said the budget was submitted by President Rodrigo Duterte to the House on the same day that he delivered his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last Monday, July 23.

Among the key budget priorities the President identified are intensifying infrastructure development through infrastructure projects in and outside Metro Manila and in local government units (LGUs), and through Information Technology (IT) infrastructures; and expanding programs on human development.

He was also pushing to enhance social services through expanded educational opportunities, universal health for all, and social protection; continuing provisions for the people’s basic needs by ensuring food security and securing meaningful employment; rehabilitating Marawi and moving forward; and building a more secure nation through hiring of more police officers and enhancing the capability of the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and ensuring efficient administration of justice. DMS