*Dr. Rodolfo John Ortiz Teope
The accounting equation is simple: Assets = Liabilities + Equity. Every accounting student learns that both sides must agree. But even when the figures reconcile, one question remains: did the money serve its purpose?
A building can appear in the records at its acquisition cost. Payment vouchers can carry the required signatures. Yet an accounting entry alone cannot establish whether the price was reasonable, the construction sound, or the building useful.
It cannot, by itself, prove that the building exists.
The accounting equation is not a government budget formula. But its lesson is useful: a correct total cannot replace a clear explanation of its components.
Imagine a father standing at the doorway of his flooded home, holding his daughter’s schoolbag. The notebooks are soaked. Inside, his wife struggles to lift their mattress above the water.
“Pa, may pasok pa kaya bukas?”
Wala siyang maisagot. Iniisip niya kung paano patutuyuin ang uniform at kung makapapasok pa siya sa trabaho.
He may never read an appropriations document. But he knows exactly how high the water reached.
The figures may balance while a family struggles to put its life back together.
This is why the flood-control scandal hangs over the proposed 2027 Philippine national budget. Budget watchdogs have warned against repeating the irregularities exposed in earlier spending. Another promise of transparency reasonably invites the question: what has changed?
Hindi sapat ang “may pondo na.” May sapat na bang proteksiyon para hindi ito mawala, mawaldas, o mapunta sa maling bulsa?
The Supreme Court’s October 20 announcement described its ruling against congressional increases that exceeded the President’s recommended total appropriations in the 2024 and 2025 budgets, alongside specified 2026 provisions. It emphasized that unprogrammed appropriations require constitutional limits and safeguards. The government subsequently announced plans to seek clarification and partial reconsideration. These developments warrant scrutiny of the 2027 proposal; they do not automatically invalidate its amendments or establish corruption.
Kaya makatuwiran ang tanong: kung kailangan talaga ang proyekto, bakit hindi malinaw ang detalye bago ito pondohan?
Congress must retain the authority to correct omissions and address neglected needs. Every substantial amendment should nevertheless carry a defined location, credible cost, technical justification, funding source, and implementation plan.
If a project is ready to receive public money, its proponents should be ready to explain it publicly.
According to the Philippine News Agency, the People’s Budget Coalition identified nearly 7,000 House-added infrastructure items worth approximately ₱190 billion that it flagged for lacking publicly available supporting documents. These findings remain subject to verification and do not automatically establish irregularities.
Hindi ito dahilan para hatulan agad ang lahat. Dahilan ito para ilabas ang dokumento at patunayang kailangan, makatwiran ang halaga, at kayang ipatupad ang proyekto.
Distribution among districts deserves the same examination. Equal membership in Congress does not require identical funding: population, poverty, geography, disaster exposure, and infrastructure gaps differ.
Every district’s allocation must, however, meet the same transparent standards.
Kung mas malaki ang pangangailangan, ipakita ang batayan. Kung mas mahal ang construction dahil sa terrain, ipaliwanag. Hindi dapat maging sukatan kung sino ang mas malapit sa makapangyarihan.
These are allocations for communities, not personal budgets belonging to congressmen. Government should publish geographically attributable spending by district, separately identifying projects serving several communities.
Financing must be equally clear.
Sa laki ng budget na inilalatag, saan manggagaling ang pera? Uutang na naman ba ang Pilipinas? Paano natin titiyaking walang bahagi nito ang mauuwi sa bulsa ng mga tiwaling opisyal at kanilang kasabwat?
National debt cannot be assessed against Treasury cash alone. Sustainability also depends on revenues, economic growth, financing costs, and repayment schedules.
In business, “trading on equity” means using debt to seek higher returns to owners. It can work when investment returns exceed financing costs. Kapag mali ang pinaglagyan, nananatili ang interes at obligasyong magbayad.
Government has responsibilities beyond earning financial returns. Borrowing may support essential services and productive investment. Its financing strategy must still explain how today’s obligations will remain manageable tomorrow.
An insertion funded through reallocation does not automatically increase borrowing. It can nevertheless displace another priority. Where borrowed resources are stolen, the intended benefit disappears while the obligation survives.
The money can disappear while the debt remains.
Responsible borrowing should strengthen the economy’s capacity to sustain public services. Public investment can help enterprises improve productivity, reach overseas markets, and create jobs. Export earnings belong to businesses, rather than automatically becoming Treasury receipts, but the production, employment, and incomes they support can broaden the revenue base. Hindi sapat na bagong buwis lamang ang pag-usapan; kailangan ding palawakin ang pagkakataong kumita.
Overseas Filipinos already support their families through remittances, which are private funds rather than direct government revenue. Their sacrifices should reinforce the urgency of creating opportunities at home. Investments in skills, reliable infrastructure, and productive enterprises should help Philippine-based workers and businesses earn from global markets. Sa ganitong paraan, ang pangungutang ay may malinaw na kaugnayan sa pagpapalakas ng kabuhayang susuporta sa pagbabayad nito.
Business Operations Management asks whether those investments actually work. A flood-control structure must fit the drainage or river system it serves. Design, construction quality, and maintenance determine its usefulness.
Hindi sapat ang completed contract at litrato. Kailangang gumana ang proyekto kapag dumating ang ulan.
Corruption breaks the connection between expenditure and benefit. Overpricing purchases less protection. Defective work endangers communities. A nonexistent project delivers nothing.
Kapag ninakaw ang pondo, nawawala ang pera at ang pagkakataong dapat nitong likhain.
Congress should disclose significant amendments, their proponents, supporting documents, funding sources, and expected results. Implementing agencies should publish procurement, inspection, progress, and payment records. Where evidence establishes corruption, accountability must reach everyone responsible.
Balikan natin ang amang hawak ang basang schoolbag. Gusto lamang niyang makapasok ang anak, makapagtrabaho siya, at makauwi silang ligtas.
He deserves to know why the next budget will produce a different result.
The figures must add up. The projects must exist and work. The financing must be sustainable. And the differences in who receives what must be explained.
Dahil ang bawat utang ay may magbabayad, bawat pondong ninakaw ay may pinagkaitan, at bawat pangakong serbisyo ay may pamilyang naghihintay.
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