THE proposed 2024 national budget of P5.767 trillion translates to an average daily spending of P15.8 billion, but only P11.7 billion of this is supportable by revenues, leaving a P4-billion hole that must be filled with debt, Deputy Speaker and Batangas Rep. Ralph Recto said on Sunday.
“To fully grasp the dimensions of the budget, you have to compute it on a daily basis to fully appreciate the enormity of both spending and borrowing,” Recto said. Recto said that while the “art of budget marketing perfected by all governments” focuses on what will be spent, “what is downplayed is the enormous money required to finance it.”
The Marcos Jr. administration will borrow P1.853 trillion next year from the domestic market through the sale of Treasury bills and Treasury bonds . The Bureau of the Treasury will tender P51.050 billion worth of T-bills and P1.802 trillion worth of T-bonds next year. However, if the principal amortization requirement of P3.4 billion a day is added to the interest payment of P1.83 billion, “real” debt service expenditures would be around P5.2 billion daily, Recto said.
“Gross borrowings next year—to finance the deficit, debt, and development—have been forecasted to reach P2.46 trillion, or about P6.7 billion daily,” Recto said.