THE DEPARTMENT of Budget and Management (DBM) announced Tuesday a system upgrade to its website following increased traffic and the spread of misleading claims regarding the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
In a statement, the DBM said its Information and Communications Technology Systems Service (ICTSS) conducted a three-hour maintenance from 10 p.m. Monday to 1 a.m. Tuesday, to improve website speed and efficiency.
This move comes amid false rumors circulating online that the DBM had altered the 2025 GAA by “filling in the blanks.”
The budget department has categorically denied these claims.
“There is no truth to the rumors disseminated by fake news peddlers and professional government destabilizers that the DBM edited the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) to fill in the blanks, as there is no single page or figure missing in the 2025 GAA,” the DBM said.
The 2025 GAA has been publicly available since Jan. 3, 2025 through its website, the DBM said, adding that it has been accessed by thousands of users online.
Printed copies are available in both houses of Congress.
The DBM also emphasized that the National Expenditure Program for 2025, which outlines the government's proposed budget, was uploaded to the website on July 29, 2024.
The DBM also pointed to the recent recognition of the Philippines as Asia’s most fiscally transparent nation, a result of its commitment to transparency through initiatives like the Open Government Partnership and Digitalization.
The department urged the public to be cautious of misinformation and exercise discernment in evaluating such claims.
Former president Rodrigo Duterte and Davao City 3rd District Rep. Isidro Ungab recently claimed that at least 13 pages of the budget include items with blank appropriations, suggesting a "blank check" scheme for future allocations.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. denied the allegations, saying that Duterte was lying and that as former chief executive, he knows that the budget cannot be passed with blank items.
Meanwhile, the DBM had said the allegations are “malicious and irresponsible allegations,” adding that Duterte and Ungab presented pages from the Bicameral Conference Committee Report, and not the General Appropriations Bill nor the approved GAA. (Darryl John Esguerra)
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