Revilla got biggest 'pork' in 2011


MANILA, Philippines - Movie actor-turned senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. received the largest amount of pork barrel funds in 2011 among the 307 members of Congress.


The latest Department of Budget and Management (DBM) report, dated yesterday, showed that the agency released a total of P210 million to Revilla last year.



It was not explained why the releases exceeded by P10 million the P200-million annual priority development assistance fund or PDAF (euphemism for the lawmakers’ pork barrel) allocation for a senator.


The report also showed that the newest senator, Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, received P18.6 million in PDAF funds. Edgardo Angara received P100 million; Alan Peter Cayetano, P30.5 million; Pia Cayetano, P71.2 million; Franklin Drilon, P19.5 million; Jinggoy Estrada, P100 million; Juan Ponce Enrile, P83.5 million; Francis Escudero, P50 million; Teofisto Guingona III, P46.2 million; Gregorio Honasan, P100 million; Lito Lapid, P100 million; Loren Legarda, P89.4 million; Ferdinand Marcos Jr., P95.5 million; Francis Pangilinan, P72 million; Ralph Recto, P100 million; Miriam Santiago, P80 million; Vicente Sotto III, P100 million; Antonio Trillanes IV, P35.4 million; and Manuel Villar Jr., P138 million.


Senators Joker Arroyo, Panfilo Lacson and Sergio Osmeña III have not been touching their annual PDAF allocations.


Resigned Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri did not receive any PDAF release in 2011 although in 2010, his releases totaled P41.9 million. Koko Pimentel has taken over his seat.


Of Revilla’s P210 million, the senator from Cavite spent half or P115 million for the purchase of 529 “used multi-cab/patrol vehicles” costing P217,391 each for use by the associations of barangay councils in his home province.


Angara allocated P40 million for projects in Aurora, his home province, P18 million for the rehabilitation of Mebaka channel in the Budiao-Banadero River in Daraga, Albay, and P20 million in financial assistance to San Isidro town in Isabela.


Alan Peter Cayetano’s P30.5 million is all financial assistance, including P5 million for Taguig City for the construction of a health center and P5 million for a four-story dormitory at the University of Eastern Philippines in Northern Samar.


Pia Cayetano’s biggest projects are a multi-purpose building at the Taguig City University worth P10 million, a school building at the Taguig Elementary school costing P5 million, two sea ambulances for the province of Palawan valued at P4.6 million, and P7 million in financial assistance to six state hospitals.


Estrada set aside P50 million in financial assistance to indigent farmers and P20 million for “boulder bank protections” in Pangasinan’s third engineering district. He gave nothing to San Juan in Metro Manila, his hometown, where he was mayor for three terms.


His half-brother, Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, is the incumbent representative of San Juan, whose mayor, Guia Gomez, is JV’s mother.


Enrile gave away his funds in the form of financial assistance, including P15 million to government hospitals, P10 million to San Juan (Metro Manila), P4 million to Navotas, and P10 million to Angat, Bulacan.


Drilon allocated P7.9 million for the electrification of four sitios in Barangay San Vicente, Sta. Ana, Cagayan; P5 million for the completion of the agribusiness center in UP Los Baños; and P5 million for the rehabilitation of the public market in Pavia, Iloilo.


Escudero’s projects include 80 units of multi-cabs costing P13.5 million for use by barangays in Cebu City, a P5-million multi-purpose building in Davao City, another P5-million multi-purpose building in Pangasinan, and a P4-million road construction in Ilocos Norte.


Like Enrile and Cayetano, Guingona spent his funds in the form of financial aid, including P10 million for the Heart Center, P15 million for the Bulacan Medical Center, P5 million for the town of Matag-ob in Leyte, and P4.5 million for the Sarangani Provincial Hospital.


Honasan gave away P2 million to four state hospitals but spent P40 million for the planting of jatropha, a plant touted as a source of biofuel and on which the Arroyo administration wasted more than P1 billion. It found out too late that jatropha was not a commercially viable plant.


Honasan also allocated P50 million for road projects in North Cotabato.


Lapid set aside P31 million for infrastructure projects in his hometown in Porac, Pampanga; P11 million for the purchase of anti-dengue medicine in Castillejos, San Antonio and Botolan towns in Zambales; and P5 million also for anti-dengue medicine in Morong, Rizal. He gave the Porac District Hospital P300,000 in financial assistance.


Legarda’s projects are mostly small, costing from P200,000 to P500,000, but they are spread throughout the country.


Marcos spent P24.7 million for various projects in Ilocos Norte, his home province; and financial assistance amounting to P10 million for Umigan, P5 million for Mangatarem and P5 million for Rosales towns, all in Pangasinan; P10 million for Pilar, Bataan, and another P10 million for Sariaya, Quezon.


Pangilinan allocated P20 million for the construction of housing units in Legazpi City and P10 million in financial aid to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.


In the case of Recto, his projects include a P5-million, farm-to-market road in Bulacan, motorcycle units with sidecars costing P12 million for 110 barangay units in Batangas, his home province, and P10 million in financial assistance to barangay communities and public elementary and high schools in Tiaong, Quezon.


Santiago devoted the bulk of her funds to road projects: P15 million for the first Metro Manila engineering district, P10 million for Batangas, and P36 million for Rizal.


Sotto allocated P15 million for the rechanneling of an unspecified river and P10 million for the clearing of an unnamed creek, both in Angeles City; and P31 million for the purchase of anti-dengue medicine in three towns in Zambales, two towns in Quezon and one town in Romblon.


He also gave away P500,000 in financial assistance to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City and P200,000 to the East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City.


Like Guingona, Trillanes is a big donor of state hospitals. His P35.4 million is all financial assistance to state schools and hospitals, including P5 million for the Heart Center, P5 million for the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, and P4 million for the Zamboanga Medical Center.


Villar allocated P39 million for scholarships and P2.5 million for a farm-to-market road in Davao del Sur’s first district, which is represented in the House by Marc Douglas Cagas; P12 million for “slope protection/desilting” projects in the second Metro Manila engineering district, and at least P6 million for livelihood projects in Las Piñas, his hometown.


The DBM released a total of P19.5 billion in PDAF funds to senators and congressmen last year.  

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