'Take two' for add'l P8M Capitol budget
History is marked anew in the Iloilo Sanggunian Panlalawigan (SP) as proponents for the over P8 million in additional Capitol budget calls for a 'take two' on the SP approval of said amount.
The move as sought is relative to the earlier request of Governor Niel Tupas where after the 'thorough deliberation' of the SP Committee on Appropriation, the Governor's request was found to be 'reasonable and the same is necessary for the operation of the Provincial Government for the last quarter of the year, for the effective delivery of basis services to the people.' The Governor's son, Fifth District Board Member Neil Tupas Jr. chairs the Appropriations Committee.
'Take two' in the SP body's nod though following the November 2nd session where it was now recognized that not enough required majority vote was obtained. To recall, only six members of the SP gave its nod while three manifested their dissent to yet more budget for the Capitol's operations.
The amount as appropriated will see over P2.7 million in donations by the Office of the Governor, P1.5 million in equipment outlay for the Office of the Governor and P2.8 million for the hospital equipment of the Don Valerio Palmares Memorial Hospital.
'It is the first time that the Iloilo SP will move to approve something of this kind for the second time. It was clear then that they did not have enough numbers that will constitute qualified majority yet they pushed through with the voting. Now they finally realized their mistake. So what else should be done but a 'take two.' Is this legal or regular though? That remains to be seen,' an SP official said.