Ashley Brooke G.

Morris
BSA-3B

1. Budget Process of Barangay Minane

Our Punong Barangay, Edward Castro Suarez, with the assistance of the
Barangay Treasurer, Marife Ramos Nunag, prepares the barangay budget. The Internal
Revenue Allotment (IRA) shall provide the estimated budget for the year.
 The preparation consists of conducting a meeting with the Sangguniang
barangay to formulate the Annual Investment Plan. Also, discuss all the
necessary agendas about the appropriations of the funds and the estimates
of income, including the Development Fund, Calamity Fund, SK Fund
(separate), and other programs like in agriculture, health, peace and order,
infrastructure, and others such as for the senior citizens, salaries of
barangay officials, etc.
 Once the budget has been prepared, the Punong Barangay will provide an
approval of the document.
 It will then be submitted and subjected to a budget review of the
Municipal Sangguniang Bayan.
 Afterward, the Punong Barangay will then proceed with the execution of
the budget for the year. 

2. Difference between the actual and budgeted costs of the barangay

Barangay Minane's actual expenditures for the past years exceed the proposed
budget that needed to use surplus or savings to reduce costs. 

PHILHEALTH ISSUES AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM)

The Senate Committee recommended filing criminal charges against Health

Secretary Francisco Duque III and former PhilHealth president and CEO Ricardo
Morales, and other Philhealth officials over the alleged violations in PhilHealth. The
committee also recommended to the executive department to re-shuffle regional vice
presidents every 3 years and to not be stationed in the same region more than twice to
lessen familiarity among executives and prevent collusion.

The charges were base on the alleged improper and illegal implementations of the
Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM), issuing more than 14 billion pesos in the
funds without valid criteria for distribution in addressing COVID-19. The Senate called
on PhilHealth to quickly require all unqualified hospitals and clinics that received IRM
funds to submit liquidations and return what is left.

Overpriced ICT project

The committee also recommended charges against Jovita Aragon, and Calixto
Gabuya Jr. for the alleged overpricing of its ICT project to steal taxpayer's money. Both
admitted that they “did not tell the truth” about the specifications of the IT procurement
plan. Besides overpricing laptops, network switches, and other tech equipment, they also
tried to procure "nearly obsolete" items at P320K each. Meanwhile, the Department of
Budget and Management was called on to take over the procurement of the state insurer’s
IT hardware and software requirements.