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President Marcos backs Cabinet over budget criticism
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. supported his Cabinet members who feel "unjustly beleaguered" amidst the controversy surrounding the 2026 national budget and anomalous flood control projects.
The President acknowledged their sentiments before departing for a state visit to Cambodia.
Marcos' statement came after Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin criticized some House of Representatives members for allegedly attempting to shift blame for corruption and budget failures onto the executive branch.
Bersamin stated that Cabinet members would not tolerate attacks on the executive department's integrity or attempts to politicize the budget process.
Bersamin had previously advised the House to "CLEAN YOUR HOUSE FIRST!" and heed the public's demand for accountability.
It was a consensus among Cabinet members to release a unified statement objecting to plans that could tarnish the executive branch's reputation.
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Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin urged members of the House of Representatives to address internal corruption and budget process failures within their own chamber before criticizing the executive branch.
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President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has stated that returning the proposed 2026 national budget to Malacañang is not an option.
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President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. expressed strong anger and became emotional, even teary-eyed, over systemic corruption in multi-billion-peso flood control projects.
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Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin clarified his "clean your house first" remark, stating it was not intended to malign the House of Representatives but to emphasize the constitutional separation of powers.
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President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has directed a "zero tolerance" approach for dubious insertions and duplicate allocations in the proposed 2026 national budget.
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