Franklin Drilon

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Monday rejected the statement of 1-Pacman party-list Rep. Mikee Romero that he should be blamed for the delay in the approval of the budget for the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.

Drilon said the statement of Romero is an insult to the leadership of the Senate. “Ito ay malaking insulto sa Senado. His accusations are misplaced and baseless, to say the least,” he said.

Drilon said the delay in the passage of the 2019 national budget was caused by “unconstitutional insertions blatantly made by the House of Representatives in the budget to the tune of P95.3 billion worth of pork barrel funds.”

The minority leader earlier questioned the P50-million fund for the SEA Games cauldron during the plenary deliberations on the budget of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA).

“Kung pinayagan po nating makalusot itong P95.3 billion pork barrel, kaya nitong punuin yung P50-million kaldero sa SEA Games,” he added.

Drilon said it was he who suggested a solution to address the budget impasse.

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“To refresh Mr. Romero’s memory, had it not been for the solution or compromise that I proposed, which enabled Senate President Vicente Sotto to sign and send the 2019 budget to Malacañang, we would not have resolved the 2019 budget impasse and we would have continued on a reenacted budget,” he said.

“Had it not been for my efforts, certain quarters in the administration would have pushed through with recommending to the President the veto of the entire 2019 budget,” he added.

Drilon urged Romero to stop giving baseless statements.

“Hence, I reject Mr. Romero’s unfounded accusations. Mr. Romero should refrain from issuing irresponsible and baseless statements,” he said.

Romero, in an interview on ANC, said Drilon should also be blamed for the mess in the country’s SEA Games hosting as the delay in approving the budget affected their preparation.

“Had the budget not been delayed, these mishaps would probably not have happened. I guess it's also partly Drilon's fault because the budget wasn't approved by the Senate right away,” he said. —KBK, GMA News