PHP 8.37 billion worth of Iloilo projects inserted in House budget

ILOILO CITY — A civil society review of the House of Representatives’ version of the proposed 2027 national budget flagged 336 records involving projects in Iloilo City and Iloilo province, totaling PHP 8.37 billion.

The dataset was compiled by the civil society organizations (CSOs) People’s Budget Coalition and BetterGov.PH. It compared line items in House Bill (HB) No. 10858, the House version of the national budget, with the National Expenditure Program (NEP).

The House approved HB 10858 on third and final reading this month, voting 281-13 with one abstention. The bill is now with the Senate.

The NEP, the PHP 7.2 trillion spending plan the Department of Budget and Management submitted to the House on Aug. 11, served as the baseline for the comparison.

The data identified 7,465 projects that were either inserted into the House bill with no counterpart in the NEP submitted by the executive branch, or adjusted, with their proposed budgets raised or lowered from NEP levels.

In Iloilo, the 336 records fall under three program categories: Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects, farm-to-market roads, and health facilities.

DPWH projects account for 298 records, farm-to-market roads for 23, and health facilities for 15.

The House bill amounts total PHP 7.44 billion for DPWH projects, PHP 537.75 million for farm-to-market roads, and PHP 396.24 million for health facilities.

By comparison status, 277 records are classified as “House bill only,” or definite insertions; 31 as possible matches whose corresponding NEP entries remain unconfirmed; 14 as having higher amounts in the House bill; and 14 as having lower amounts.

By implementing office, 260 projects fall under DPWH district engineering offices and 38 under the DPWH Central Office.

Another 38 records lack office information or list unrecognized offices and could not be classified.

Specific insertions

Among the largest “House bill only” entries in Iloilo province is the PHP 265.459 million completion of a multipurpose building in Miag-ao, listed under the DPWH Central Office.

Other major entries include a PHP 139.165 million multipurpose building in Tigbauan and two shoreline protection projects in Miag-ao worth PHP 138.495 million each.

The House bill also lists PHP 122.5 million for a drainage outfall from the national road along the Iloilo-Capiz Road in Leganes to Buntatala Creek.

It likewise lists PHP 122 million for a multipurpose building with site development in Oton and PHP 105 million for flood control works along Inguan Creek in Leon.

The list also includes a PHP 100 million multipurpose building at the Iloilo Provincial Hospital (IPH) in Barangay Rumbang, Pototan.

These amounts are the values listed in the House bill for entries classified as “House bill only” in the comparison dataset.

In Iloilo City, the largest city-specific “House bill only” entry is the PHP 50 million completion of the College of Law building at the West Visayas State University (WVSU) main campus in La Paz, assigned to the DPWH Central Office.

Three inserted projects are in Mandurriao district alone. They are a PHP 48 million [PROJECT TYPE] in Barangay Q. Abeto, plus two multipurpose building and evacuation center projects worth PHP 25 million and PHP 15 million. The two are at Mandurriao Elementary School and in Barangay Hibao-an Sur, respectively.

Other insertions include PHP 20 million each for two multipurpose building projects at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) in Barangay San Felix, City Proper.

A PHP 20 million multipurpose building in Barangay North Fundidor, Molo, is also listed as an insertion.

The comparison also lists a PHP 15 million multipurpose building and evacuation center in Barangay Bo. Obrero, Lapuz, as an insertion.

A separate PHP 40 million entry for a multipurpose building and evacuation center in Barangay West Timawa is tagged as a possible match whose corresponding NEP entry remains unconfirmed.

Increases

Among projects with amounts in both the NEP and the House bill, the largest increase went to the Barotac Viejo Bypass Road. Its allocation rose from PHP 33.8 million in the NEP to PHP 150 million in the House version, an increase of PHP 116.2 million.

The allocation for medical equipment at the IPH in Pototan rose from PHP 11.7 million to PHP 50 million, an increase of PHP 38.3 million.

The House bill also raised the allocation for two multipurpose buildings in Barangay Buenaflor Embarkadero, Dumangas, from PHP 11 million to PHP 40 million, an increase of PHP 29 million.

The combined allocation for two multipurpose buildings in Barangay Poblacion, Alimodian, rose from PHP 20 million to PHP 40.5 million, an increase of PHP 20.5 million.

The construction of the Napnapan Norte Bridge in Tigbauan also received an increase, from PHP 5 million to PHP 12.5 million, or PHP 7.5 million more.

Decreases

The largest directly comparable reduction hit a flood control structure along the Lamunan River downstream of Barangay San Andres in San Rafael. Its allocation fell from PHP 688.925 million in the NEP to PHP 103.204 million in the House bill, a decrease of PHP 585.721 million.

A road project connecting barangays Macatunao and Tambaliza in Concepcion was cut from PHP 114 million to PHP 20 million, a decrease of PHP 94 million.

The Anilao Bypass Road allocation fell from PHP 71.057 million to PHP 40.057 million, a reduction of PHP 31 million.

The Barotac Nuevo-Dumangas-Dacutan Wharf Road allocation decreased by PHP 30.374 million, from PHP 74.459 million to PHP 44.085 million

Health facilities

In Iloilo City, the infrastructure allocation for the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in Mandurriao was halved from PHP 60 million to PHP 30 million.

The comparison also identified health facility components with no matching amount in the other budget version.

These include a PHP 200 million infrastructure insertion in the House bill for the WVSU Medical Center.

They also include separate medical equipment entries listed at PHP 100 million in the NEP. The dataset classified these as a decrease, but no matching House bill amount was found.