‘Proposed 2016 nat’l budget speaks louder than SONA’

MANILA, Philippines – Two documents used as bases for the last State of the Nation Address (SONA) will give a better picture of the achievements of President Benigno Aquino III, said Senator Ralph Recto.

“This early, I predict that the numbers in the two reports are more impressive than the SONA. I think the Technical Report will explain in detail the many great things the President has done,” he said in a July 26 press release.

He was referring to the Technical Report to the SONA and the proposed 2016 national budget, the documents that serve as bases for the SONA itself.

The Technical Report details the achievements of the administration since the last SONA, explained the lawmaker. It comes in the form of a thin book with pages full of numbers.

The proposed national budget, meanwhile, outlines the government’s plans for next year. It consists of 5 volumes, in total around a foot thick.

While the president’s SONA is bound to be full of promises, the proposed 2016 budget proves what programs are being readied for the country.

“You may promise many things but the proof that you will do it is in the budget, which is the annual expression of government programs. A program is only a drawing until no peso sign is attached to it,” said Recto in a mix of English and Filipino.

The proposed budget totals around P3 trillion, marking a 15% increase from the 2015 budget of P2.6 trillion. It will be presented to Congress a day after the SONA.

Recto urged the government to promote the content of the Technical Report and budget proposal aside from just the SONA text.

“Even if they are boring and full of numbers, those are the numbers that matter to us. Numbers count as much as rhetoric. And they must match the rhetoric.” – Rappler.com