SENATE deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros yesterday said the Department of Education should train its sights on education reforms instead of national security as she hit the agency’s proposed P150 million confidential funds.
Hontiveros said the requested amount is even higher than that of the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, the government’s intelligence agency.
“We do not question the legal basis for the provision of confidential funds to civilian agencies like DepEd. But their confidential fund, which they say is supposed to go to surveillance activities for the security of students and teachers, is higher even than what the State’s intelligence agency asked for. The budget prioritization is misplaced. Let’s leave intelligence and security to the pros,” Hontiveros said.
The DepEd has asked for a confidential funds of P150 million, saying the funding is needed to address issues hounding its personnel and learners, including recruitment in terrorism, violent extremism, and drug use, among others.
The proposed confidential and intelligence funds of NICA is at P141.2 million.
Hontiveros said that any intelligence operation to be conducted by the DepEd will be “redundant” since there are already “existing national security, national defense, law enforcement, even women and children protection governmental bodies and programs.”
“I share the department’s advocacy of making schools safe spaces for our children. These are important issues that have been brought up, but they can be coordinated instead. We should avoid duplication of functions and flagrant job-mismatch in government. Hindi trabaho ng DepEd ang national security. At walang kakayahan o imprastraktura ang DepEd na maglunsad ng surveillance activities at crime busts (National security is not the job of DepEd. And it has no expertise to conduct surveillance activities and crime busts),” the senator said.
Hontiveros said DepEd’s confidential funds should be realigned to much-needed educational programs and reforms, including for the education of indigenous peoples.
Meanwhile, Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, Senate finance committee chairman, said NICA is asking for additional funds for its proposed budget next year.
The committee was briefed by the NICA in a closed-door session yesterday because of security matters which cannot be disclosed to the public.
After emerging from the closed-door meeting, Angara said NICA is pushing for additional funds for its monthly operating and other expenses and capital outlay.
He did not disclose the amount asked for but said it runs to “hundreds.”
Upon the resumption of regular sessions on November 7, Angara said the Senate will spend two to three weeks of committee hearings on the proposed budgets of the different agencies.
After that, senators will come out with their respective committee reports and will sponsor them for plenary debates which will take about two to three weeks before it the measure is approved and subjected to bicameral conference committee discussions.
Angara said the budget bill is expected to be ready for the President’s approval and signature by December 15.
