AUGUST 9, 2011

NR # 2490

P23.4B needed to fill up 67,000 government positions

The government would need a budget of P23.4 billion next year to fill up some 67,000 positions in various agencies and offices, according to Budget Secretary Florencio Abad. Abad disclosed this during the recent briefing of members of the House Committee on Appropriations on the proposed P1.816 trillion-national budget for 2012. He said the government has tightened the use of savings to avoid anomalous practices such as the conversions and abuse in the use of savings from unfilled positions. The P23.4 billion shall form part of the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund (MPBF) to cover for the unfilled positions in the Constitutional Commissions and Offices enjoying fiscal autonomy, the Military or Uniformed Personnel, the Educational Institutions, and Hospitals. These funds will be released upon the submission of sufficient proof that personnel have been hired for these positions. In his budget message to lawmakers, President Aquino said Personal Services will increase by 9.8 percent to P593.3 billion, P23.4 billion of which shall be used to support the final tranche of the Salary Standardization Law III and the requirements for new teachers, uniformed personnel and other civil servants. We will hire 13,000 more teachers next year to fill in the gap for teacher shortage, with a budget of P2.9 billion, slightly higher by P484 million compared to the current years level. This is on top of the P8.9 billion allocation out of the MPBF which will be released upon submission of documentary proof that teaching personnel have been hired to fill vacant teaching positions, said the President. Constitutional commissions and offices enjoying fiscal autonomy would require a total P4.971 billion to fill up their vacant positions. These offices and their budgetary requirements for hiring include the Congress of the Philippines P281.693 million; the Judiciary P1.985 billion; the Civil Service Commission P122.836 million; Commission on Audit P1.851 billion; Commission on Elections P162.341 million and the Office of the Ombudsman P567.793 million. Meanwhile, hiring of additional military or uniformed personnel in the following offices would require a budget of P6.118 billion broken down as follows: Department of Environment and Natural Resources National Mapping and Resource Information Authority P1.548 million; Department of Interior and Local Government-Bureau of Fire Protection P240.458 million; DILG-Bureau of Jail and Management Penology P71.679 million; DILG-Philippine National Police P4.897 billion and DND-Armed Forces of the Philippines P907.398 million.

Educational institutions have a proposed allocation of P11.278 billion to fill up their vacancies. These include DepEd P8.895 billion; State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) P2.039 billion; DILG-Philippine Public Safety College P10.587 million; Department of Labor and Employment-Technical Education and Skills Development Authority P232.964 million; DND-National Defense College of the Philippines P6.337 million; DNDPhilippine Military Academy P18.741 million; Department of Science and TechnologyPhilippine Science High School P33.661 million; and Other Executive OfficesCommission on Higher Education P41.487 million. For hospitals, the unfilled positions would require a total budget of P 1.058 billion broken down as follows: Department of Health P1.001 billion; DND- AFP Medical Center P18.748 million; and DND-Veterans Memorial Medical Center P38.104 million. (30) rbb