President Rodrigo Duterte will not endorse the proposed P420-billion stimulus package proposed by Speaker Lord Allan Velasco called “Bayanihan 3” to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a news conference on Monday, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said. that the P4.5-trillion 2021 national budget and the P165-billion Bayanihan to Recover as One (Bayanihan 2) law are enough to address the effects of the pandemic.
“Well, we appreciate the policy initiatives of Speaker Velasco. Pero ang consistent position po natin diyan ay mayroon po tayong sapat na fiscal stimulus ngayon sa ating annual budget at ipinapatupad pa po natin iyong Bayanihan 2,” said Roque.
“Pero siyempre po, we appreciate the filing of Bayanihan 3 dahil kung kulang po talaga, then we will of course resort to Bayanihan 3. Sa ngayon po, tingnan po muna natin kung anong mangyayari sa pagpapatupad ng 2021 budget at iyong pagpapatupad pa rin ng Bayanihan 2 na extended po hanggang taon na ito,” the official added.
Earlier, Velasco, author of the proposal, along with Marikina Representative Stella Quimbo, said Bayanihan 3 could help boost the economy after sinking to a minimum of 9.5% by the end of 2020 — the lowest since 1946.
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Aside from the Bayanihan 2 law and the 2021 national budget, President Duterte also approved the Bayanihan to Heal as One law or “Bayanihan 1,” which empowered the Chief Executive to transfer parts of the 2020 budget to address the COVID-19 problem.
In December 2020, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said he filed a Bayanihan 3 bill worth P400 billion to boost the country’s economic recovery amid the COVID-19 crisis.
“I filed a Bayanihan 3 [bill] of roughly around P400 billion,” Recto said in an interview on ANC.
Recto said most of the measures under his proposal would augment the budget for COVID-19 vaccines.
“Remember, you would be paying an advance for these vaccines. Di bale nang sumobra pa ‘yung bayad natin and provide for 100% of the population without even mandating it, but it’s available kung gusto nila puwede silang magpabakuna. That’s how it should work. Hindi ‘yung 60-70% lang, nagtitipid tayo,” he added.