Press Release
July 27, 2014

DAP a premeditated deceit
Isn't patient welfare a gov't healthcare priority?--Nancy

The government continues to peddle the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) as a means to pump-prime the economy but to Sen. Nancy Binay, the controversial program appears to have been a pre-meditated attempt to dupe the Filipino people of their hard-earned money.

"Secretary Abad has been making the rounds in the media insisting that the DAP is meant to pump-prime our economy but I fail to see how funding stem cell research--but not projects for hospitals, medicines, vaccines, or increasing nurses' pay--will have a significant and accelerated impact to our economy," the lady senator said.

Binay believes that the Senate Committee on Finance hearing on the much-criticized acceleration program on Thursday only succeeded in revealing that DAP-funded projects were never in accordance to its criteria of being instrumental in poverty alleviation, economic expansion, climate change mitigation, and its multiplier effect on the economy.

"Paulit-ulit hong binabanggit ni Sec. Abad na ang DAP na ito ang magiging instrumento ng pag-angat ng ating ekonomiya ngunit sa aking nalaman nitong nakaraang hearing sa Senado, tila ba wala namang gaanong pagsasaliksik na naisagawa bago aprubahan ang mga proyektong nasa ilalim ng programang ito," she explained.

"Sana ho ay maipakita ng DBM ang mga studies sa mga proyektong pinili nila upang pondohan ng DAP dahil nga may criteria po na dapat ay sundin sa pagpili sa mga ito. Ang nakakatakot ho ay mukhang hindi naman pinag-aralan at basat na lang pinondohan ang mga proyektong nasa ilalim ng acceleration program. Parang nasa discretion ni Secretary Abad kung alin ang popondohan and I believe that in this manner, the fiscal independence of constitutional bodies is being hijacked by DAP," Binay said.

The pooled savings of the government between 2011 and 2013 amounted to P237 billion, and P167 billion went to DAP. However, while P157 billion proposed projects were approved for the acceleration program, only P144.3 billion was released.

Having gone around the country for medical missions, she also cited the insufficient number of hospital beds and the pitiable healthcare services in government hospitals, and asked Secretary Abad whether this was not a more pressing matter than the P70 million stem cell research program.

"Ang pinondohan ho nito ay stem cell research--P70 million. Inaprubahan rin ho ang pagbibigay ng pondo sa mga pangangailangan ng OPAPP, COA, BSP at Customs. Ngunit paano ho ang mga proyektong malapit sa sikmura at araw-araw na pamumuhay ng ating mga kababayan? Tila nakalimutan na po nila na dapat unahin ng gobyerno ang mga proyektong mabilis na madarama ng ating mga kababayan," Binay said.

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