Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III delivered a firm message on Saturday: the Senate will not allow any last-minute insertions in the proposed 2026 national budget.
As Congress prepares for the bicameral conference committee next week, Sotto made it clear that the Senate is standing its ground.
In an interview with DWIZ, Sotto confirmed that the Senate is set to approve the budget on its third and final reading on Tuesday, following its second-reading approval on Thursday.
And he did not mince words.
“Hindi na puwedeng may dadagdag o mag-insert. ’Di ako papayag,” he said. No more additions. No more insertions. I will not allow it.
Sotto said this in response to growing public concern that lawmakers may once again attempt to restore questionable items during the bicam.
To reassure the public, Sotto emphasized that no “allocable” or discretionary funds remain in the budget—except those under unprogrammed appropriations, which can only be used if government revenues allow it.
These “allocable funds” refer to amounts the executive sets aside for lawmakers to assign to projects or agencies during the budget process. Many critics have long considered this a modern version of the pork barrel.
Sotto also criticized past budget practices where programmed and unprogrammed funds were swapped—especially in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), an issue he said involved hundreds of billions of pesos.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate finance committee, has already scheduled the opening of the bicam on December 10.
Sotto expects tough debates ahead—particularly on adjustments made to the DPWH budget and on amendments pushed by individual legislators. Still, he remains hopeful that discussions among chamber leaders will be smoother.
He added that “soft projects” will likely spark further debate, including Medical Assistance to Indigent Patients (MAIP) under the Department of Health, and AICS programs under the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
When asked about minority senators requesting more detailed listings of amendments, Sotto said the full list exists with the finance chair. The Senate chose to work with summaries to avoid delaying proceedings.
He couldn’t help but express surprise.
“Nagtataka nga ako bakit yun ang tinatanong nila… sila nga yung maraming insertion—ay, amendments—dun,” he said.
I was wondering why they kept asking about that… when they had the most insertions— I mean, amendments—there.
