We will start the discussion of the evolution of the role of the Legislature in budgeting with the Malolos
Constitution, which is the first constitution of the Philippines.
Before the first republic, during the Spanish occupation, the country's government system was a colonial government.
The governor general, being the chief executive, represented the all-embracing authority of the Spanish king in the
country, wielding both the power of the sword and the purse. This meant that the powers in the budgeting process were
exercised by the governor-general.
After many years of revolution, Emilio Aguinaldo proclaimed Philippine independence on June 12, 1898, in Kawit, Cavite.
Just a few months later, on September 15, 1898, a revolutionary congress was convened at Malolos, for the purpose of
drawing up a constitution for the new republic.
The Malolos Constitution was drafted by an assembly of citizens representing the entire archipelago. It enshrined the
rights of Filipino citizens denied by the colonizers. More importantly, it organized a government with powers shared by
three branches—the Executive, the Legislative, and the Judiciary.
Under this constitution, the power of government has now been distributed in the three branches and we can now see
the emerging role of the legislative in budgeting.
As enshrined in Article 83. The Government shall submit every year to the Assembly a budget of expenditures and
income, indicating the changes made from those of the preceding year, accompanying the same with a balance sheet as
of the end of the year, in accordance with law. This budget shall be submitted to the Assembly within ten days following
the commencement of its session.
The executive branch was given the responsibility to inform the legislative branch or the assembly about the changes in
the budget of expenditures and income of the country during that time.
Next, we have Article 85. The Government, in order to dispose of the property and effects of the State, and to borrow
money secured by mortgage or credit of the Nation, must be authorized by special law.
The power to allow the government to borrow money, and dispose state properties rests in the legislative branch by virtue
of a special law.
The Malolos constitution did not give the legislature broad powers in the budget process, but it opened a path that
allowed the legislature to have a role in the fiscal affairs of the state during the revolutionary period.
On February 4, 1899, less than two weeks after the Republic’s inauguration, an American soldier fired a shot against
Filipino patrols, sparking the Filipino-American War. The outbreak of hostilities between Filipino and American forces
caused the imperialist agenda in the US to gain the upper hand, resulting in the ratification of the Treaty of Paris on
February 6, thus justifying the United States' all-out pursuit of war against the Philippine Republic. After the capture of
Aguinaldo on March 23, 1901, he swore allegiance to the United States which signaled the end of His administration and
the first Philippine Republic.
—-----------Takeaways—---------------As time passes by
The two most important players in the budget process are the legislature and the executive budget office.
As budgeting becomes more relevant for a wider range of policy and management challenges, officials throughout
government will increasingly focus on how they can influence these choices by repositioning their roles in budget
formulation, execution and oversight.
Legislatures have often found they need help to play credible roles in budgeting. As noted earlier, the legislature can be
overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of budget documents, their technical complexity, and the years of expertise
possessed by executive central budget offices.
Legislative officials should continue to strengthen their capacity to oversee executive performance. This
can include engaging audit offices and other independent analytic resources to make assessments of
program performance and management performance. Legislatures should consider ways to improve their
incentives to engage in oversight.
Congress has a very active and vocal role in the budget process in the Philippines. The fact that a majority of members of
both the House and the Senate are also members of their respective chamber’s budget committees is most noteworthy.
The budget approval process is often tense between the House of Representatives and the Senate and within the
Bicameral Conference Committee. Congress is not always able to approve a budget prior to the start of the fiscal year,
and in some cases not at all. This situation, together with the practice of nominally reducing appropriations for interest on
the debt in order to increase other appropriations, raises questions about the commitment of Congress to fiscal
responsibility. The Constitution gives the President extraordinary power vis-à-vis Congress in budgetary matters, which
has served to counteract the effects of these practices.
Approval of the budget should not be used as a political tool. More often than not, politicians in using the
power of the purse to intimidate agencies to follow what they want. Naaapektuhan ang performance ng
mga agencies na eto. For example, in 2018, congressmen who were allies of then-president duterte
attempted to only give the CHR a budget amounting to a thousand pesos because of their investigation
into the extrajudicial killings during duterte’s term.
Legislative oversight, in particular, seeks to ensure that the executive and its agencies, or those to whom
authority is delegated, remain responsive and accountable.