4 hours ago
1
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
Jose Rodel Clapano - The Philippine Star
June 28, 2025 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Speaker Martin Romualdez yesterday expressed his full support for the call to institutionalize a transparent budget process by opening bicameral deliberations to the public.
“This is a crucial step in restoring public trust and ensuring that the national budget truly reflects the will and welfare of the people,” he said.
The #OpenBicam campaign, gaining traction among reform advocates, pushes for the full disclosure of bicameral conference committee deliberations – the final stage of reconciling House and Senate versions of the national budget.
He said that livestreaming the bicam proceedings for real-time access by citizens and stakeholders would help make the budget process more open to public scrutiny.
“We owe it to every Filipino to ensure that the budget is crafted with integrity, discipline and full disclosure,” Romualdez said.
He added that the 19th Congress had already laid down important groundwork in enhancing budget transparency.
“We passed key accountability measures. Now we must build on that momentum by opening the most sensitive and final stages of the legislative process to the Filipino people,” he said.
He also vowed to work with fellow lawmakers, both in the House and the Senate, to institutionalize the #OpenBicam.
Romualdez called on civil society organizations, academic institutions, media and all concerned Filipinos to actively monitor the discussions.
“We invite every citizen to witness how their budget is being crafted – live and unfiltered. This is your money. This is your future. And now, this is your Congress,” Romualdez said.
