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Stop whining on budget, Andaya told

BY WEI{DELL VIGIUA
AN administration lav'maket yester-
day said House majority leader Rolan-
do AndayaJr. should stop questiorung
President Dutertet decision to veto
around P95.3 billion in public wo&s
projects under the P3.757-trillion
nationat budget for 2019.
The Ptesident, in signing Repub-
lic Act 1 1 260 last week, vetoed the
items which covered programs and
projects that are not palt of the
administration's priority projects
when he signed
"Coogtes sman Andaya should
just shut up and stop whining,"
Rep. Luis Raymond Villafuerte
(l{l Camarines Sur), a vice chair
of the committee on appropda-
tions, said in a press satement
Villafirete criticized Andaya, his
political nemesis in the province, for
continuing to question the Presi-
dent's decision even if Malacafrang
has already released dre veto mes-
sage and explained it to the public.
He said despite the release of
See STOP ) Page 86

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isting laws have no place in the GAA as these
STOP are considered 'rider' ptovisions and therefore'
the veto message as Andala has tequesred, the must be subject ed to direct lcto Likewise. irems
maioriry leadei"still can't accept the fact rhat of appropriation fiat are not consistent-with
his illegal acr of realigning items in the budget the oroerammed prioriries are hereby veroed."
has beeo exposed and rejected outright," v'ittrf,'.rr ieminXed Aodava that the Presi-
Villafuerte also said what led to a three-mondr dent's line veto "was already a slap in the face
delav in the eructrnent of the budget was the for dre House leadetshiP."
House panel! insistence in the bicameral meedng "Perhaps Congressman Andalz wans anodret
with senatots to realign items in tlle budget after slap, tiis time on the otler cheel to iolt him to
the Senate and House alteady ratified the General hii senses that it's over for the unconstitutional
Appropriations Bill (GAB) on February 8. abominations that he and his cabal in the House
Andaya said in a radio interview last vreek had tried to inflict on the national budget," he
that rejecting the items ditecdy for not being said.
part of the Ptesidenti priorities is not a ''legal Citing official re-
i.ason" for the direct vero. He said it should cords, Villafuerte said
have been a conditional veto. last month that over
Andaya, a vetean lawyet and a formet budget P90 billion in pub-
sectetaty, insisted that a direct veto applies only lic works aod health
to items that ate illegal or unconstitutional. funds for piograms
Villafuette, however, pointed out that Chief under the ratified
Presidential Legal Counsel and presidential budget, which were
spokesman Salvador Panelo has akeady cat- originally intended for
egorically stated that tle vetoed items inserted over 80 districts, were
in the Department of Public Works and High- illegally realigned dut-
ways appiopriations vrere "unconstitutional" ing the congtessional
while 12 o*rer items were "ddet" provisions hteak and allocated
The Ptesidentk veto message sated, "Any to other districts, Par-
ptovision introduced in this budget which does ticularly to those of
not relate to a paticulat apptopriation ot those some "favored lavr-
which seek to amend the Constitution and ex- makers."

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