JV Ejercito seeks funding for priority rail projects amid budget cuts
November 15, 2024
Senate Senior Deputy Majority Leader Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito is urging his colleagues in the Senate to include key railway projects in the programmed appropriations of the 2025 proposed budget for the Department of Transportation (DOTR).
Ejercito, who is the sponsor of the DOTr’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2025, expressed his intention to introduce an amendment to include funding for the PNR South Long-Haul Project, Mindanao Railway Project, and MRT Line 4 Project.
“Through our recommendation and the support of Senator Grace Poe, our Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, we were able to introduce additional funding to the department’s budget,” Ejercito said during the three-hour budget deliberation of the agency on Thursday night.
He noted that these rail projects, crucial to improving connectivity and reducing traffic congestion, have not received adequate funding in the National Expenditure Program (NEP) and General Appropriations Bill (GAB).
“There is an immediate need to fund the aforementioned items to prevent loss of jobs and sustain the operational requirements of the project management offices.”
Ejercito emphasized the importance of these infrastructure projects in promoting economic growth and creating jobs for Filipinos.
“I would like to take this opportunity to appeal to my dear colleagues to support us. In the long term, this will stimulate our economy and create more job opportunities for our countrymen.”
The 2025 DOTR budget proposal stands at P106.86 billion, which is a 42% decrease from the original budget in the NEP, and reflects P76.2 billion cut under the GAB.
This reduction, according to Ejercito, is not aligned with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.'s call for a “full speed ahead” approach to the transport sector.
“This cut derails the effort of the government to develop the sector. It also has great implications especially on the ongoing construction of priority railway projects,” he said.
He also called on his colleagues to restore the budget for loan proceeds of several priority infrastructure projects, which were reduced under the GAB.
