MANILA - Senators Richard Gordon and Panfilo Lacson on Monday opposed a proposal to create the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR), saying existing government agencies are already performing the mandate of the proposed addition to an already "bloated" bureaucracy.
The two senators' objection to the establishment of the new agency being pushed by Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, the longtime aide of President Rodrigo Duterte, came as the country reels from the devastating impact of super typhoon Rolly (international name: GONI) in the southern part of Luzon.
In a statement, Lacson said a new department will cost the government at least P1.5 billion to set it up, and billions more for the salaries, capital outlay and operational expenses.
"It is relatively easy to pass a law creating new departments. But would it be feasible, and will there be proper funding for it?" he said.
"We can see that the newly created departments like the Department of Information and Communications Technology and the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development cannot be properly funded, or at least are not given the appropriate funding to work properly," Lacson noted.
Finance officials had told senators that tax collections this year are expected to reduce after the closure of several businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and next year after the Supreme Court ruled that local government units (LGUs) are entitled to its Internal Revenue Allotments (IRAs) on the basis of all national taxes.
MANILA - Senators Richard Gordon and Panfilo Lacson on Monday opposed a proposal to create the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR), saying existing government agencies are already performing the mandate of the proposed addition to an already "bloated" bureaucracy.
The two senators' objection to the establishment of the new agency being pushed by Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, the longtime aide of President Rodrigo Duterte, came as the country reels from the devastating impact of super typhoon Rolly (international name: GONI) in the southern part of Luzon.
In a statement, Lacson said a new department will cost the government at least P1.5 billion to set it up, and billions more for the salaries, capital outlay and operational expenses.
"It is relatively easy to pass a law creating new departments. But would it be feasible, and will there be proper funding for it?" he said.
"We can see that the newly created departments like the Department of Information and Communications Technology and the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development cannot be properly funded, or at least are not given the appropriate funding to work properly," Lacson noted.
Finance officials had told senators that tax collections this year are expected to reduce after the closure of several businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and next year after the Supreme Court ruled that local government units (LGUs) are entitled to its Internal Revenue Allotments (IRAs) on the basis of all national taxes.