Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Sunday pushed back against Sen. Imee Marcos, disputing her assertions about alleged pork in the proposed 2026 national budget and taking issue with her remarks against the Senate’s blue ribbon committee.
Lacson said Marcos’ public attacks lacked factual basis, pointing out that she had been part of the bicameral conference committee that finalized the 2026 spending measure. He added that Marcos herself benefited from allocations in earlier budgets, weakening her standing to raise accusations now.
“She makes a lot of noise criticizing the 2026 budget for having ‘pork’ but she had ‘pork’ in the budget,” Lacson said in a statement.
The remarks came after Marcos accused lawmakers of disguising pork barrel funds by breaking them into smaller items she labeled “pork giniling.” Lacson countered that Marcos did not raise similar concerns when the budget was being reconciled by the bicameral panel.
“She has no moral ascendancy to criticize,” he said. “In the first place, she was a member of the Senate contingent in the bicameral conference committee. Why didn’t she raise the issue that there was pork? We heard nothing from her then, when she was in the bicam.”
Lacson also cited budget documents to argue that Marcos had sizable allocations in the 2025 spending plan. He said records showed she had P2.5 billion in allocables under the National Expenditure Program, with similar amounts reflected in the final General Appropriations Act following bicameral insertions.
“Marcos had allocables worth P2.5 billion in the NEP according to the Cabral files. Most allocables were moved from the NEP to the 2025 GAA (General Appropriations Act) via insertions in the bicam where Sen. Marcos had at least the same amount based on DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) records,” Lacson said.
While some of the funds were marked for later release, Lacson said portions of those flagged amounts had already been disbursed.
“While part of the insertions were flagged for later release (FLR), part of her FLR allocables had been released,” he said in an interview on radio dzBB.
Although Lacson acknowledged that Marcos voted against the 2026 budget due to what she described as increases in “soft pork,” he maintained that she had accepted similar funding mechanisms in the past, including allocations coursed through government assistance programs.
“She was so fond of attending such distributions, and now she says there is ‘pork giniling’ in the budget? You know, if you don’t have any moral ascendancy, just keep quiet because it will come back to you. People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones,” he said.
Lacson also addressed Marcos’ criticisms of the Senate blue ribbon committee, which he chairs, particularly over its inquiry into the flood control controversy. He rejected her claim that he restricted members from naming political figures during hearings.
“In the first place, what pressure is she talking about when she never attended any of the hearings I chaired?” he said.
“I have said before that the best response to nonsense is silence. But when she starts insulting, I cannot disregard it anymore. By insulting the blue ribbon committee, she is undermining its integrity. Why does she not attend and ask questions?” he added.
When asked about suggestions that budget allocations could be used to influence lawmakers in a possible impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte, Lacson declined to weigh in.
“Under the Constitution, the House has the power to impeach, and the Senate has the power to convict or acquit. So since we could be senator-judges in a potential impeachment case, we cannot comment especially on the merits of the case,” he said.
