By Pexcel John Bacon
CONGRESS should place greater weight on the results of government programs when reviewing the proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027, with agency funding tied more closely to performance and service delivery, analysts said.
“The more important question is whether that spending produced the outcomes that the agency was supposed to deliver,” University of Makati political science professor Ederson DT. Tapia said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
Mr. Tapia said lawmakers should look beyond budget use rates and determine whether agencies delivered the services and outcomes they were mandated to achieve.
He said Congress should assess agencies based on program results, service delivery, audit findings and beneficiary reach, with stronger-performing programs receiving greater consideration for continued or expanded funding.
However, he cautioned against automatically reducing allocations for agencies that fail to meet their targets.
“Poor performance should not automatically mean an across-the-board budget cut,” Mr. Tapia said.
Weak results could stem from poor implementation, unrealistic targets, procurement bottlenecks, overlapping functions or insufficient funding, he said. In such cases, Congress may need to redesign or restructure programs rather than simply reduce their appropriations.
Mr. Tapia said performance indicators are already part of the budget process but should play a bigger role in congressional deliberations.
Lawmakers should focus less on budget requests and line items and more on whether agencies achieved their goals, he said, adding that agencies should be required to explain gaps between targets and actual accomplishments.
He also urged Congress to make greater use of Commission on Audit findings, Department of Budget and Management performance reports, program evaluations and multi-year data when evaluating agencies.
University of Santo Tomas Political Science Department Chairman Dennis C. Coronacion said lawmakers should demand measurable results rather than routinely approving agency budgets.
“As Congress debates the P7.2-trillion budget for 2027, lawmakers must demand actual results instead of just approving the same old funding,” he said in a Messenger chat.
He said Congress should evaluate the impact of government programs instead of relying mainly on numerical accomplishments.
“Congress must measure real impact, such as how much students learned, and not just how many textbooks were printed,” Mr. Coronacion said. “Quality should be measured, not just quantity.”
Mr. Coronacion also said lawmakers should closely examine agencies with unresolved audit findings or questionable fund transfers. “These red flags should lead to budget cuts.”
He said a performance-based approach would help protect public funds by rewarding effective programs, curbing wasteful spending and identifying projects that require changes.
Mr. Coronacion added that linking funding to performance could encourage agencies to improve efficiency and transparency.
Still, he said Congress should avoid eliminating funding for essential but underperforming programs.
“If an essential program is failing, Congress should change the management and fix the rules first, rather than completely cutting off the public who relies on it,” he said.
The analysts’ comments came as lawmakers began reviewing proposed agency budgets and possible amendments to the 2027 spending plan.
In a statement on Sunday, Party-list Rep. Antonio L. Tinio warned of a possible increase in congressional insertions in the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) proposed budget, saying changes could delay project implementation.
Mr. Tinio said planned institutional amendments to the DPWH budget could add more projects that may later be placed under the “For Later Release” category.
He said such a system could slow implementation and lengthen project timelines.
Only 32% of the agency’s 17,000 national projects for 2026 had been awarded as of the third week of August, Mr. Tinio said, citing DPWH data.
He warned that continued amendments and insertions could hamper infrastructure delivery and the provision of public services, including classroom construction.
Mr. Tinio said he would continue scrutinizing the DPWH budget, particularly allocations for school-building projects.