Authorizing access to General Fund 151 (Dept of Energy)

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https://www.dbm.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/Issuances/2013/Joint%20Circular%202013/DBM-COA-DOF/UACS%20Manual.pdf

1.1.1 General Fund

General Funds are funds available for any purpose that Congress may choose to apply, and is
composed of all receipts or revenues that do not otherwise accrue to other funds.

https://www.dbm.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/UACS/UACS-Primer.pdf

General Fund. Fund which is available for any purpose to which the Congress may choose to apply, and is composed of all receipts or revenues which are not otherwise accruing to other funds.

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From: http://abernales.com/eo848.htm

Executive Order No. 848

AUTHORIZING THE USE OF THE SPECIAL ACCOUNT IN THE GENERAL FUND (FUND 151) OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY FOR PURPOSES AS MAY BE DIRECTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES

WHEREAS, the Department of Energy (DOE) is authorized to coiled fees, revenue and receipts from any and all sources including receipts from service contracts and agreements such as application and processing fees, signature bonus, discovery bonus, production bonus, collection from concessionaires, representing unspent work obligations, fines and penalties, royalties,: rentals, production share on service contracts and similar payments on exploration, development and exploitation of energy resources in accordance with Sections 3 and 8 of Presidential Decree (P.D.) No. 910 (Creating an Energy Development Board, Defining its Powers and Functions, Providing Funds, Therefor, and For Other Purposes);

WHEREAS, the above-enumerated collections has been constituted as a Special Account in the General Fund – Fund 151 (SAGF-151) of the DOE to be used to finance energy resource development and exploration programs and projects of the government and for such other purposes as may be directed by the President of the Philippines, pursuant to Section 6 of P.D. No. 910; and
 
WHEREAS, the SAGF-151 of the DOE may be utilized only by the DOE for the above-mentioned purposes under existing budgeting, accounting and auditing laws, rules and regulations.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:

SECTION 1.  Release of Funds.  – The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) is hereby authorized to release funds, in such amount as may be necessary, from the SAGF-151 of the DOE, to the implementing agency (IA) concerned, for purposes as may be authorized by the President of the Philippines:  Provided, That the release of funds shall be subject to the following:
 
(a)       Request for release of funds by the IA;
 
(b)       Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) certification on the availability of funds deposited with the SAGF-151 of the DOE; and
 
(c)       Existing laws and budgetary, accounting and auditing rules and regulations.

SEC. 2.  Implementing Agency.  – The IA shall be responsible for the implementation of the programs and projects, and its disbursements/expenditures shall be subject to applicable laws and budgeting, accounting and auditing rules and regulations.
 
For recording purposes, the DBM shall authorize the IA to open and maintain a SAGF for the amounts released pursuant to this Executive Order (EO).  In case the IA is a Local Government Unit, the SAGF shall be issued to DBM; and if the IA is a Government Owned or Controlled Corporation, the SAGF shall be issued to the BTr.
 
SEC. 3.  Repealing Clause.  – All EOs, rules, regulations and other issuances or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with the provisions are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 4.  Effectivity.  – This EO shall take effect immediately.
 
Done in the City of Manila, this 13th day of October in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Nine.

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Aquino asks SC to lift TRO on pork barrel funds, says reforms will work
By: Christian V. Esguerra - @inquirerdotnet Philippine Daily Inquirer / 05:41 PM September 24, 2013

President Benigno Aquino III. AP FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Saying “reforms are already underway,” President Benigno Aquino III and fellow respondents have asked the Supreme Court to junk petitions seeking to have the pork barrel system declared as unconstitutional.

In a 23-page comment filed Monday, the Office of the Solicitor General also urged the high tribunal to lift the temporary restraining order on the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) in 2013.

The respondents argued that the TRO would “work to the damage of innocent citizens who rely on the operations of the PDAF for educational and medical assistance purposes.”

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“The reported abuses of the PDAF are problems of implementation, they do not go into the constitutionality of the law, as defined by this Honorable Court’s existing jurisprudence,” argued the OSG, which filed the comment for all respondents except Senate President Franklin Drilon.  The other main respondents are President Aquino, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr.

The OSG comment called the Malampaya Fund and the President’s Social Fund – described by critics as Aquino’s pork barrel – as “special funds, the disposition of which have been constitutionally delegated to the President.”

“The Congress has the constitutional authority to create special funds and there is no constitutional basis to compel the Executive to include ‘off-budget’ items in the GAA [General Appropriations Act],” the respondents said.

The OSG insisted that Aquino “has officially declared his intent to abolish PDAF and has specified his plan to replace [it] with a defined program of line-item budgeting.”

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Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/494213/aquino-asks-sc-to-lift-tro-on-pork-barrel-funds-says-reforms-will-work#ixzz5KdCbLk2m

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Philippine court rules 'pork barrel' fund illegal in blow to Aquino
Reuters Staff

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-philippines-corruption-idUSBRE9AI09120131119

MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines’ highest court ruled on Tuesday that a widely misused fund for legislators’ pet projects was unconstitutional in an embarrassing blow for President Benigno Aquino and ordered the money be returned to the Treasury.

The scandal over lawmakers’ misuse of “pork barrel” funds has become the biggest crisis of Aquino’s three-year rule, tainting his image as a corruption fighter and undermining his ability to push economic reforms.

The Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) has been widely lambasted for channeling money to projects solely to impress voters, though many of the projects have turned out to be non-existent.

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The following article came out before the SC ruling above.

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President ‘very strict’ about Malampaya Fund, now P130B
By: Michael Lim Ubac - Day Desk Chief / @umichaelNQ
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 01:22 AM September 21, 2013

The Malampaya Fund’s current balance stands at P130 billion, and President Benigno Aquino III spent only P15 billion from the fund in 2011 and 2012 “for energy-related projects including the purchase, refurbishment and transport of a US Coast Guard cutter,” Malacañang said Friday.

The Palace justified the use of Malampaya funds for the ship renamed BRP Gregorio del Pilar as it will be used to secure our energy resources in the disputed West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

Unlike the Arroyo administration, Mr. Aquino’s government did not dip into the fund and spend the money for purposes other than what was provided by Presidential Decree No. 910 of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, said deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte.

The Marcos-era decree provides that royalties and proceeds from the exploitation of energy resources should form part of a special fund to finance energy development projects of the government.

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“There have been 10 projects funded, sourced from the Malampaya Fund since the President took over on June 30, 2010,” said Valte.

But presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda admitted in a previous interview that Mr. Aquino had tapped into the fund to pay for the P423-million refurbishment of the US Coast Guard Hamilton Class cutter that the government acquired from the United States in 2011. The vessel has now been renamed the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, one of only two warships that the country owns.

He justified the use of Malampaya money because the refurbished Gregorio del Pilar was to be used “to secure our energy resources” in the West Philippine Sea.

“So we have been very studious and judicious in the use of the Malampaya (Fund),” Lacierda said.

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In 2012, the Aquino government tapped the fund for two programs: the Barangay Line Enhancement and Sitio Electri fication Projects, P1.108 billion; and for the transfer, dry-docking and periodic hull maintenance costs of one weather high-endurance cutter class vessel, P880.6 million.



Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/491851/president-very-strict-about-malampaya-fund-now-p130b#ixzz5KdLAhabo
Follow us: @inquirerdotnet on Twitter | inquirerdotnet on Facebook

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Interesting development regarding ownership of resources

SC Holds Palawan as Not Entitled to Share in the Proceeds of the Camago-Malampaya Project
January 23, 2019

http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/541/

The Supreme Court has declared that the Province of Palawan is not entitled to share in the proceeds of the Camago-Malampaya natural gas project. Palawan premised its claim on the ground that it has territorial jurisdiction over the Camago-Malampaya reservoir.

The Camago-Malampaya natural gas project is covered by Service Contract No. 38 between the Republic or national government and the contractor which was subsequently composed of a consortium of Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. and Occidental Philippines, Incorporated (SPEX/OXY).

In a 94-page consolidated decision penned by Justice Noel Gimenez Tijam, the Court En Banc granted the petition of the Republic in GR No. 170867 to reverse and set aside the December 16, 2005 decision of the Regional Trial Court of Palawan, Branch 95 in Civil Case No. 3779 declaring that Palawan “is entitled to the 40% share” of the government’s earnings derived from the Camago-Malampaya natural gas project since October 16, 2001. The Court also denied the Petition for Review filed by Bishop Arigo Pedro Dulay, et al. in GR No. 185941, which questioned the constitutionality of Executive Order No. 683 of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo authorizing the release of funds for development projects in Palawan pursuant to the Provisional Implementation Agreement between Palawan and the national government for being violative of the Constitution and the Local Government Code (LGC), which is the basic issue in GR NO. 170867.

The Court held that there is no debate that the natural resource in the Camago-Malampaya reservoir belongs to the State, noting that Palawan’s claim is anchored not on ownership of the reservoir but on a revenue-sharing scheme, under Section 7, Article X of the 1986 Constitution and Section 290 of the LGC, that allows local government units (LGUs) to share in the proceeds of the utilization of national wealth provided they are found within their respective areas.

The Court, however, found that existing laws do not include the Camago-Malampaya reservoir within the area or territorial jurisdiction of the Province of Palawan. It stressed that “As defined in its organic law, the province of Palawan comprises merely of islands. The continental shelf, where the Camago-Malamapaya reservoir is loated, was clearly not included in its territory.

The Court also held that Presidential Decree No. 1596, which constituted Kalayaan as a separate municipality of the Province of Palawan, cannot be the basis for holding that the Camago-Malampaya reservoir forms part of Palawan’s territory. It declared that the delineation of territory in PD 1596 refers to Kalayaan alone and that the inclusion of the seabed, subsoil, and continental margin in Kalayaan’s territory cannot by simple analogy be applied to Palawan. Likewise, it held that the definition of “Palawan” under Republic Act No. 7611 should not be taken as a statement of territorial limits for purposes of Section 7, Article X of the 1987 Constitution, but in the context of RA 7611 which is aimed at environmental monitoring, research, and education.

The Court also did not subscribe to Palawan’s argument posited by the Province of Palawan that the national wealth, the proceeds from which the State is mandated to share with the LGUs, shall be wherever the local government exercises any degree of jurisdiction. “An LGU’s territorial jurisdiction is not necessarily co-extensive with its exercise or assertion of powers. To hold otherwise may result in condoning acts that are clearly ultra vires. It may lead to, the words of the Republic, LGUs ‘rush(ing) to exercise its powers and functions in areas rich in natural resources even if outside its boundaries) with the intention of seeking a share in the proceeds of its exploration’ – a situation that ‘would sow conflict not only among the local government units and the national government but worse, between and among local government units.’”

The Court pointed out also that Palawan never alleged in which of its municipalities or component cities and barangays the Camago-Malampay reservoir is located, militating against its claim that the area form part of its territory.
The Court further held that 1) estoppel does not lie against the Republic as previous acknowledgments of Palawan’s share were based on the mistaken assumption that it it is entitled to the said allocation, 2) Section1, Article X of the 1987 Constitution did not apportion the entire Philippine territory among the LGUs such that at any one time, a body of water or a piece of land should belong to some province or city, 3) the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) did not confer on LGUs their own continental shelf as this pertains to the coastal state.

(GR No. 170867, Republic v. Provincial Government of Palawan; GR No. 185941, Bishop Dulay v. Ermita, December 4, 2018)

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COA Chairperson Pulido Tan ends term; makes good on promise of reforms
Published: 02 February 2015

https://www.coa.gov.ph/index.php/2013-06-19-13-07-50/news-releases/156-coa-chairperson-pulido-tan-ends-term-makes-good-on-promise-of-reforms1

COA Chairperson Maria Gracia M. Pulido Tan addresses COAns at her last flag ceremony as leader of the Commission on February 2, 2015.

February 2, 2015, QUEZON CITY, Philippines- Commission on Audit (COA) Chairperson Maria Gracia M. Pulido Tan ends her term at the helm of the audit body making good on her promise for reforms in the Commission’s organizational structure, policies, systems and procedures that paved the way for a more efficient, effective and independent audit service.

Speaking to COAns at her last flag ceremony as their leader, Chairperson Pulido Tan said “We saw that if we work as a team, give the tasks our time and attention they require, and transcend our personal interests for the common and larger goals, we can overcome the impediments to efficiency, effectiveness and excellence.”

“I was only your Chairperson from 18 April 2011 to today, 2 February 2015. I was merely your caretaker and leader for that period. Kayo ang tunay na  Commission on Audit, you who have made COA your life career and calling, and have sworn to serve with utmost dedication and faithfulness. Let it therefore be also your pride and fulfillment. As such, make it so, its future is in your hands and minds and hearts,” Chairperson Pulido Tan emphasized.

Among the projects Chairperson Pulido Tan will be remembered for is the Citizen Participatory Audit (CPA) Project launched in 2012 which enabled citizen engagement with the Commission’s work. Within a year of its launch, the CPA won the “Bright Spot” award at the Open Government Summit held in London and has sparked the interest of the United Nations and other Supreme Audit Institutions as the only citizen audit of its kind.

More significantly, Chairperson Pulido Tan had been relentless in leading the audit of high impact projects, including the Special Audit of the Priority Development Assistance Fund or pork barrel and the Malampaya Fund. She had been bold in pursuing sensitive issues that have previously been relegated to the background, including enforcing stricter measures in the use of Confidential and Intelligence Fund and disaster-related funds.

COA’s excellent and independent audit performance in the almost four years Chairperson Pulido Tan sat at its helm contributed to the Commission’s rise in positive public opinion. COA rose from number 31 in 2012 to number 12 in 2014 in the Makati Business Club’s perception of government performance and received a rating in 2013 of +22, from only +8 in 2009 according to the Social Weather Stations survey of best performing anti-corruption agencies.

Chairperson Pulido Tan expressed her thanks to everyone in the Commission, specially to Commissioner Heidi L. Mendoza who Pulido Tan said “was with me from the very beginning, for unselfishly sharing with me her intimate and deep knowledge of the COA and its work, for wholeheartedly supporting me carry out our reform agenda, and for tirelessly and competently working on every assistance I asked of her.”

Chairperson Pulido Tan also extended her thanks to Commissioner Jose A. Fabia for “for accepting the challenge to work for a COA all of us can be proud of” and to the Assistant Commissioners and Directors “who dared to break barriers with me, explore uncharted waters, and adopt innovative measures to bring the Commission on Audit to the consciousness and appreciation of our countrymen.” 

Chairperson Pulido Tan concluded her speech with the same message she gave on her first day in office: “May we not forget that we are but pilgrims on this earth and that we will pass this way only once, so whatever good we can do, let us do it now.  Fame, power and fortune will surely pass, but the legacy of an honest and competent public service will live forever.”

Appointed by President Benigno S. Aquino III in 2011, Chairperson Pulido Tan served the remaining term of Chairperson Reynaldo A. Villar.