Quimbo flags P289-B insertions in 2025 DPWH budget during bicam

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said it only discovered in the final budget that its 2025 allocation had swelled to P1.113 trillion, far higher than the roughly P800 to P900 billion proposed by both the House and Senate before the bicameral conference.

During the agency’s budget hearing in the House on Wednesday, September 17, DPWH Planning Service Director Alex Bote said their knowledge of the proposed budget is limited to the executive branch’s proposal, the congressional hearings and plenary debates.  

Once the proposed budget is brought to the bicameral conference committee, this means both chambers of Congress have passed their versions of the General Appropriations Bill (GAB). 

“After the Senate plenary po, na-consume na po namin mula lower house hanggang upper house. Sorry to say, Mr. Chair, wala na pong knowledge ang whole department in connection with the add-ons,” Bote said.  

“Malalaman nalang po natin ‘yan ‘pag lumabas na ‘yung General Appropriations Act,” he added.  

P289 billion insertions? 

Typically, the House starts budget deliberations first. In 2024, the lower chamber transmitted its version of the 2025 GAB to the Senate for its review in late October 2024. 

The Senate can either adopt the House’s proposed budget allocations or recommend its own. 

In the case of the DPWH’s 2025 budget, Rep. Miro Quimbo (Marikina, 2nd District) said the House actually proposed to decrease the agency’s budget from the National Expenditure Program’s (NEP) P898.9 billion to P825.1 billion.

This translates to a P73.78 billion cut in the agency’s proposed budget for 2025. 

However, Quimbo said that the proposed DPWH approved by the Senate on third reading in November 2024 was P899.8 billion, which meant the Senate not only sought to restore what the House slashed but also to increase it by P10 billion. 

Bote and DPWH Undersecretary Ador Canlas confirmed the agency was aware of these changes, saying they were “on the record.”    

“What we can identify here are the figures na dumating po at pumasok beyond doon po sa nabanggit po nating established NEP po natin,” Bote said.  

Given these numbers, the DPWH’s final budget is a P288.6 billion increase from the House’s proposal, or a P213.9 billion increase compared to the Senate’s.

The only way changes would have been made after both chambers approved their versions of the GAB is through the bicameral conference committee, where the House and Senate reconcile differences or reach compromises. 

Apparently, according to Quimbo and Rep. Mikaela Suansing (Nueva Ecija, 1st District), the bicam also has a technical working group that functions like the so-called “small committee,” where “institutional amendments” are made. 

DPWH urged to identify proponents

Quimbo stressed that the roughly P289 billion increase in the DPWH’s budget from what the House approved is a “mystery” that needs to be investigated. 

“The focus should be here because this is now a byproduct of the technical working group of that bicam,” he said, adding that the group was composed of two members without naming them.  

“Dadalawang tao lang yan. Paulit ulit ang sinasabing pangalan, ‘wag na natin lituhin kasi madalas tayo nalilito na mayroon small committee. In reality, the insertions and the changes happen in the bicam,” Quimbo said.  

The problem, however, is not only the sudden and huge increase in the agency’s budget but also the lack of names pointing to who proposed the alleged insertions.  

Deputy Speaker Ronaldo Puno said on Wednesday that the bicam’s “small committee” was composed of former appropriations chair Rep. Elizaldy Co, former Sen. Grace Poe, Sen. Chiz Escudero and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez. 

However, he said only Escudero and Co were present in those hearings, blaming them for the anomalies in the budget. 

RELATED: As Romualdez exits, Puno pins 2025 budget anomalies on Zaldy Co, Escudero

Quimbo then asked the DPWH whether it is open to identifying and publicizing “sponsors” of budget amendments starting with the 2026 budget. 

Newly appointed DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon agreed, calling it a great idea. This comes as departments and agencies submit “errata” — or corrections to their NEP budget — to the appropriations committee. The errata may also include suggestions from lawmakers coursed through the agency heads.

“We absolutely agree with the recommendations. Tama po yan at tingin ko ‘yan din po ang gusto ng ating pangulo,” Dizon said.

DPWH P255-B cut

The DPWH completely scrapped its budget for flood control projects, slashing the agency’s budget by P255 billion, proposing these funds be realigned to agriculture, education, healthcare and other programs. 

It proposed a P625.78 billion budget instead for 2026, the lowest since 2020.

The agency’s budget has been one of the most contentious aspects surrounding the 2025 budget, as it singlehandedly surpassed the budget allocated for the Department of Education (DepEd), which was P11.6 billion lower than the 2025 NEP's proposed budget.