A group of homeless residents from the East Bank Road in Barangay Sta. Lucia in Pasig City who were on their second week of holding a protest camp-out in Mendiola, Manila decried the P15.5 billion allocated budget of the Duterte government for the upcoming 31st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. The international meeting would be followed by the 12th East Asia Summit and the first state visit of United States (US) President Donald Trump in the country from November 12-14.
Balikwas Kadamay and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan Metro Manila said that this government spending is “a clear and grand display of wasting public money.”
“This huge amount of taxpayers’ money could have been utilized and rechanneled to provide the basic social services and needs of poor Filipino families,” said Jimlin Penolio, spokesperson of Balikwas Kadamay.
Out of the said budget, P11.5 billion is allotted for the use of the Office of the President; P7.6 billion of which is allotted for entertainment and representation.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), the office of Secretary Martin Andanar, the newly-appointed Presidential Spokesperson Atty. Harry Roque and also the office of Assistant Secretary for Social Media Esther Margaux “Mocha” Uson, was allotted P1.5 billion for ASEAN-related activities. This amount was more than the PCOO budget for the whole year of 2017 and even their proposed budget for 2018. The PCOO was noted to have P1.373 billion budget in 2017 as per Andanar’s statement in the Senate deliberations, where the legislative body also approved a P1.351 billion budget for the PCOO for 2018.
“We highly condemn these insensitive and impractical moves from our government. President Duterte was either trying to impress Trump and other ASEAN leaders by spending lavishly or plainly wasting money, while not giving enough services and support to his own people,” said Penolio.
Meanwhile, a news publication also reported that employees of agencies involved in ASEAN have used funds vacationing in Boracay, Cebu, Davao, Palawan and Cagayan de Oro City in the guise of helping ASEAN visitors or participating in meetings.
Penolio added, “Being homeless, it enrages us more to think that the government is spending extravagantly for these global conferences that will not benefit the majority of our people. In contrast, the ASEAN and EAS would only serve the vested interests of powerful foreign nations.”
She pointed out, “The people’s money is spent on conferences that will eventually cause us miseries and economic hardships.”
Mispriority
The groups also released a matrix of their study on what basic services for the poor could have been generated by the P15.5B ASEAN budget.
| SOCIAL SERVICE | AVERAGE UNIT PRICE | BENEFICIARIES |
| Average Low-Cost Housing | P 450,000.00 | 34,444 new homes |
| Free Secondary Education (6 years) | P 280,000.00 | 55,357 HS students |
| Free Tertiary Education (4 years) | P 200,000.00 | 77,500 College students |
According to them, an IBON Foundation study showed that an average low-cost housing amounts to P450,000.00 per unit. A total of 34,444 new homes could be built if only the ASEAN 2017 budget would be diverted to building shelters for the poor.
But they also said that housing projects that will be given by the government must adhere to the ‘United Nations Right to Adequate Housing’ guidelines which ensures legal security of tenure, affordability, habitability, availability of services, materials, facilities and infrastructures, accessibility to employment, healthcare, schools, and cultural adequacy.
Meanwhile, part of their study shows that the P15.5 billion ASEAN 2017 could have helped provide free education to thousands of students in the secondary and tertiary levels.
Based on their estimates, every high school student in a public educational institution from grades 7-10 needs at least P30,000 every year and P160,000 annually for every junior and senior high school student. This sums up to P280,000 in the span of 6 years in high school. The group said that around 55,357 students could have enjoyed free public secondary education with the budget for ASEAN 2017.
They also saw that 77,500 college students might have benefited free four-year college education with the ASEAN budget given that an annual average tuition and other fee expenses in the tertiary level reach P200,000 or P50,000 every year.
Homeless to join 3-day protest vs. ASEAN, Trump visit
Balikwas Kadamay and Bayan Metro Manila announced that they would join the three-day protest in Manila against ASEAN, EAS and Trump visit from November 12-14.
They also vowed not to leave their camp in Mendiola even beyond the global events until their demands for the awarding of their land be granted by President Duterte.
They plan to hold a “Homeless Dinner” in Mendiola on November 12 to counter the lavish dinner of the heads of ASEAN states in Pasay City on the same date and time that it was scheduled to take place.
