Budget Secretary Florencio Abad. 蜜桃工作室 FILE PHOTO
CLARK FREEPORT, Philippines鈥擠id the 2015 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit cost P10 billion? P30 billion?
BACKSTORY: /
The actual cost of the Philippines鈥� hosting chores, including holding hundreds of meetings before the two-day discussions among 21 heads of state, was still being computed, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad told the Inquirer on Friday, a day after the summit closed.
鈥淲e will know only when the report comes in,鈥� he said, adding that public funds spent for Apec 2015 were subject to audit.
The budget official said he was not privy to the budget allocated for the event and 鈥渃annot confirm鈥� speculations that the country spent as much as P10 billion for the Apec summit.
鈥淵ou can check with the executive secretary,鈥� Abad said.
In Bulacan on Thursday, presidential candidate Sen. Grace Poe, and her running mate, Sen. Francis Escudero, urged the government to account for all Apec-related expenditures.
Transparency
In a statement, Escudero said a breakdown of government expenses and details of its arrangements with the private sector would 鈥渇oster transparency and accountability.鈥�
鈥淟et鈥檚 review what has been done, what was spent, and see the cost-benefit, if it [was] worth it,鈥� he said.
In Clark, Pampanga province, Rep. Oscar Rodriguez, chair of the House committee on good government and public accountability, said his committee would review Apec expenditures once the matter was referred to it.
At the forum of the Capampangan in Media Inc., Angeles City Councilor Max Sangil urged Rodriguez to conduct an investigation on the matter, saying it was his right as a taxpayer to know where public funds went.
Sangil wanted to know why the Aquino administration reportedly spent P10 billion in hosting Apec 2015 when, he said, the administration of former President Fidel Ramos used only P500 million when it hosted Apec 1996 at the Subic Bay Freeport.
But Rodriguez, an ally of President Aquino, asked critics 鈥渢o give the national government the benefit of the doubt.鈥�
Representatives of Apec鈥檚 21 member-economies held 229 meetings, Mr. Aquino said, to 鈥渁dvance our individual economies and [that of] the region at large.鈥�
The President said he was 鈥減roud to have continued our success as hosts by laying the foundations on which Apec can chart a course to improve trade and strengthen quality growth.鈥�
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