Use pork barrel in useful projects, not to recoup campaign expenses – Drilon
Monday, 03 May 2010 00:00 | Author: Toni Alvarez | 
Press Release
May 3, 2010
Former Senate President and Liberal Party (LP) senatorial candidate Franklin Drilon called on his fellow candidates to make a commitment not to use their pork barrel to “recoup” their campaign expenses, but rather to allocate these funds to projects that truly benefit the country.
He said that with the candidates’ exorbitant spending in what he described as “the most expensive election in Philippine history,” legislators who are successfully elected must assure the people that their countrywide development funds, more commonly known as “pork barrel,” would not be used to reimburse their campaign expenses.
“Our candidates, as well as the present members of Congress, should be mindful of the fact that while a senator or a congressman has full discretion as to how his pork barrel funds should be spent, these funds are not his but of the people, and therefore should be spent only in projects which would directly benefit the people,” Drilon said.
He said that if elected back to the Senate, he will continue allocating his funds to the construction of school buildings in remote provinces throughout the country, recognizing the fact that education is still the key to a country’s sustainable growth.
“As you are aware, in all my 12 years as a senator, my pork barrel funds had been devoted largely to the construction of school buildings and classrooms in various provinces across the country,” Drilon said.
“In partnership with a non-stock, non-profit organization, we were able to construct around 1,400 school buildings and 415 classrooms throughout the country, at half the cost of the school buildings built by our Department of Public Works and Highways.”
“But these are not enough to deliver quality education to majority of our people. We certainly need more classrooms and more teachers if we are to achieve a hundred percent literacy rate and really move our country forward,” Drilon said.
Aside from constructing school buildings, Drilon used his pork barrel funds to construct around 95 halls of justice throughout the country.
The former Senate President said the new Congress should commit to give the highest allocation to education in the national budget, pursuant to the mandate of our Constitution.
“Our Constitution requires the government to assign the highest budgetary priority to education, and ensure that teaching will attract and retain its rightful share of the best available talents through adequate remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment,” Drilon explained.
“Education and the teaching sector remain the most undervalued sector of our society. While OFW remittances have sustained our country for years, we cannot afford to lose our best teachers to foreign countries who pay them more. The government, especially Congress, should adopt measures to elevate the quality of education in our country, and these include measures to augment our teachers’ income so they would not be enticed to work overseas,” Drilon said.
“My mother was a public school teacher, and I myself am a product of the public school system,” Drilon said. “Equal access to good education is the mark of a fair and just society.”
May 3, 2010
Former Senate President and Liberal Party (LP) senatorial candidate Franklin Drilon called on his fellow candidates to make a commitment not to use their pork barrel to “recoup” their campaign expenses, but rather to allocate these funds to projects that truly benefit the country.
He said that with the candidates’ exorbitant spending in what he described as “the most expensive election in Philippine history,” legislators who are successfully elected must assure the people that their countrywide development funds, more commonly known as “pork barrel,” would not be used to reimburse their campaign expenses.
“Our candidates, as well as the present members of Congress, should be mindful of the fact that while a senator or a congressman has full discretion as to how his pork barrel funds should be spent, these funds are not his but of the people, and therefore should be spent only in projects which would directly benefit the people,” Drilon said.
He said that if elected back to the Senate, he will continue allocating his funds to the construction of school buildings in remote provinces throughout the country, recognizing the fact that education is still the key to a country’s sustainable growth.
“As you are aware, in all my 12 years as a senator, my pork barrel funds had been devoted largely to the construction of school buildings and classrooms in various provinces across the country,” Drilon said.
“In partnership with a non-stock, non-profit organization, we were able to construct around 1,400 school buildings and 415 classrooms throughout the country, at half the cost of the school buildings built by our Department of Public Works and Highways.”
“But these are not enough to deliver quality education to majority of our people. We certainly need more classrooms and more teachers if we are to achieve a hundred percent literacy rate and really move our country forward,” Drilon said.
Aside from constructing school buildings, Drilon used his pork barrel funds to construct around 95 halls of justice throughout the country.
The former Senate President said the new Congress should commit to give the highest allocation to education in the national budget, pursuant to the mandate of our Constitution.
“Our Constitution requires the government to assign the highest budgetary priority to education, and ensure that teaching will attract and retain its rightful share of the best available talents through adequate remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment,” Drilon explained.
“Education and the teaching sector remain the most undervalued sector of our society. While OFW remittances have sustained our country for years, we cannot afford to lose our best teachers to foreign countries who pay them more. The government, especially Congress, should adopt measures to elevate the quality of education in our country, and these include measures to augment our teachers’ income so they would not be enticed to work overseas,” Drilon said.
“My mother was a public school teacher, and I myself am a product of the public school system,” Drilon said. “Equal access to good education is the mark of a fair and just society.”
