Rep. Mercedes Alvarez (Neg. Occ., 6th District) said there are no specifics yet on how the P105.35 billion budget they are seeking for the Negros Island Region will be allocated.
“We just started the hearing in the Committee of Appropriations last week and we have yet to discuss the specifics for the NIR budget,” Alvarez said in a phone interview yesterday.
Definitely though, the distribution of the budget between the three provinces – Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor – will not be equally based as it will depend on the needs of the provinces as well as other criteria such as population and area will come into play.
Alvarez said that the priority at the moment is the establishment of the regional offices and ensure that there is budget for their personnel and operations.
She said that even without a budget yet, the regional offices have been organizing already and just last week, the Department of Social Work and Development already opened their offices in Dumaguete while the Department of Agriculture has already opened up in the occidental side.
What I can assure, Alvarez said, is that “regardless whether these national agencies have a physical office in place or not, government must continue to roll out their services and assistance to our constituents.”
Earlie, Alvarez said that the Department of Budget and Management has approved the creation of 10 national government agency offices in the NIR which includes the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Health, Department of Budget and Management, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Tourism, National Nutrition Council, DOH, National Wages and Productivity Commission, DOLE, Commission on Elections and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency.