Office of the Vice President
22 August 2017
The proposed budget of the Office of the Vice President for fiscal year 2018 has been approved by the Senate Committee on Finance.
Vice President Leni Robredo herself presented the P443.9-miliion budget before the Senate panel, led by committee chair Sen. Loren Legarda, during the hearing on Tuesday afternoon.
The budget was approved at the Senate panel in less than an hour. This development comes a week after the committee’s counterpart at the House of Representative gave its nod to the budget, all in less than three minutes, dispensing with VP Leni’s presentation out of “due deference and respect” for her.
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At the Senate hearing, the Vice President was also given the chance to present the achievements of her office, in particular its shift from mere ceremonial duties to a more advocacy-driven one.
Under VP Leni’s leadership, the OVP has taken on six key advocacies through the anti-poverty program, Angat Buhay, which has reached more than 100 poor areas around the country.
The OVP has mobilized around P91 million worth of resources under the program, which has assisted more than 75,000 families in needs such as livelihood, education, food security, health, and housing. The office also extends medical and burial assistance as part of its social services program.
VP Leni explained that these efforts are possible mostly because of partnerships with the private sector. In turn, Senator Legarda suggested that the OVP seek assistance with concerned government agencies since there is “so much resources” that remain unused.
The Senate Finance committee chair, as well as vice chair Sen. Bam Aquino, vowed to assist VP Leni and her office in such regard, noting the importance of the Vice President’s initiative to go around the farthest and poorest communities around the country.
While she approved the OVP’s 2018 budget, Senator Legarda asked VP Leni and her office to submit a report on needs of communities reached under Angat Buhay, in order to help fill the needs therein.