Press Release
December 3, 2018

Sen. Lacson's Manifestation on the Forthcoming Budget Deliberations:
More at: https://pinglacson.net/2018/12/03/on-the-tight-deliberation-schedule-for-the-2019-budget/

This is a very quick manifestation regarding the forthcoming budget deliberations. We are in receipt of the tentative plenary schedule and I noticed that as proposed, we have to close the period of interpellation on Friday, Dec. 7, this Friday.

There are 271 items on the agenda, meaning agencies and offices. Even assuming that we work 24 hours a day, Mr. President, 271 divided by 72 (hours), which is the equivalent of three days, we have to tackle 3.76 agencies in one hour.

So translated into minutes - 60 minutes - which is the equivalent of 1 hour, we will have to finish one agency, one office in 15 minutes. This is assuming we won't have any breakfast break, we don't have any lunch break, no dinner break, no weewee, no meryenda.

Still it is impossible to accomplish this. So I would like to suggest that we have to rethink our position on the package of the 2019 budget, Mr. President.

I think we have to discuss this in caucus before we plunge into this kind of schedule.

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