1

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS
MANILA

IN RE: A PROPOSAL TO ENACT
A NATIONAL LEGISLATION
ENTITLED AN ACT ABOLISHING
THE PORK BARREL SYSTEM
THROUGH PEOPLES INITIATIVE,

E.M. Case No. ________


Mary John Mananzan and
Romualdo G. Kintanar and the
(total number of signatories)
Petitioners signed hereunder
X - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -/

EMEEE

PETITION


PETITIONERS, pursuant to Republic Act No. 6735 and Comelec
Resolution No. 2300, as amended, unto this Honorable Commission on Elections,
most respectfully state and aver that:

The Petitioners

1. We, the Petitioners, are _______________ (total number of signatories)
Filipinos and all registered voters of this country who affixed our signatures to this
Petition which, per Certification issued by this Honorable Commissions Election
Records and Statistics Department (ERSD), is equivalent to __ percent (___%) of
______________, the total number of registered voters as of the last national
elections, wherein each legislative district is represented by at least three percent
(3%) of the total number of registered voters therein. Said Certification is attached
herewith as Annex A.





2

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


2. We voluntarily affixed our signatures to this Petition proposing to enact a
national legislation entitled AN ACT ABOLISHING THE PORK BARREL
SYSTEM through Peoples Initiative under Article VI, Section 32 of the
Philippine Constitution and the Republic Act No. 6735, otherwise known as the
Initiative and Referendum Act.

3. We file the above proposition due to the failure of Congress to abolish and
criminalize the patronage and graft-riddled pork barrel system, consistent with
Article II Section 28 of the Philippine Constitution, which provides that The State
shall maintain honesty and integrity in public service and take positive and
effective measures against graft and corruption.

4. We fully understand the proposition, discussed its rationale, its advantages
and disadvantages, as well as its consequences and effects, as we have read the full
texts and contents thereof which were likewise clearly explained to us, in our own
dialect or in a language known to us, before we voluntarily affixed our signatures
hereto.

5. We, the Petitioners, have duly authorized the:

5.1 Peoples Initiative to Abolish Pork Barrel (PIAP) represented by Mo.
Mary John Mananzan with office address 2560 Leon Guinto St.,
Malate, Manila (tel. no. 02-5241524) and Monsignor Romualdo G.
Kintanar with office address Patria de Cebu, P. Burgos St., Cebu City
(tel. no. 032-3180850); and the

5.2. National Union of Peoples Lawyers (NUPL) with office address 3
rd

Floor, Erythrina Building, No. 1 Maaralin St, Bgy. Central, Quezon
City (tel. no. 02-9206660)

to represent us, for and in our behalf, to sign any and all pleadings/documents
subsequent and as a consequence hereof, and to do or perform any and all acts
necessary for this Petition to prosper and succeed, before the Commission on
Elections or any proper court or tribunal.

6. We file this Petition on our own behalf with the assistance of our above
duly-authorized representatives, who will represent us, and to whom the processes
of the Honorable Commission may be served at their addresses as indicated above.

7. No public funds have been spent for this Petition.







3

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


Cause of Action

8. Petitioners herein propose, as above stated, to enact a national legislation
entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System through Peoples Initiative
under Article VI, Section 32 of the Philippine Constitution and the Republic Act
No. 6735, otherwise known as the Initiative and Referendum Act.

9. The proposition is based on the Philippine Constitution which provides
that The State shall maintain honesty and integrity in public service and take
positive and effective measures against graft and corruption. (Section 28, Article
II, 1987 Constitution), and the Supreme Court decision concerning pork barrel in
Belgica, et al. vs. Ochoa, Jr., et al., G.R. No. 208560 and that concerning
Disbursement Acceleration Program in Araullo, et al. vs. Aquino III, et al., G.R.
No. 209287;

10. The Rationale of the proposition is that a Constitutional or State Policy is
a direct mandate from the people. It is an expression of the sovereign will of our
people. It is a direct instruction from the sovereign or the people who ratified the
Constitution. As such, the State Policy contained in Article II Section 28 of the
Constitution should not be taken lightly. Much more that now, the presidential and
congressional pork barrel have been exposed and condemned by the Filipino
people as sources of graft and corruption and of patronage politics, and the
Supreme Court has struck down the DAP and PDAF as unconstitutional.

11. The full text and content of the proposed AN ACT ABOLISHING
PORK BARREL is hereunder stated as follows:

AN ACT
ABOLISHING THE PRESIDENTIAL AND CONGRESSIONAL PORK
BARREL SYSTEM, STRENGTHENING THE SYSTEM OF CHECKS AND
BALANCES OVER PUBLIC FUNDS, PROHIBITING CERTAIN
ACTS, AND PROVIDING PENALTIES THEREFOR


SECTION 1. Short TitleThis Act shall be known as An Act Abolishing the
Pork Barrel System.

SECTION 2. Declaration of State Policies and Principles. This act is a direct
exercise of sovereign power by the people of their authority to enact legislation
reserved by the Philippine Constitution.

The sovereign people affirm the need to establish a system of strict accountability
over the use of public funds to ensure that they are spent solely for functions,




4

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


programs, projects and activities that redound to the interest of the people,
especially the poor and marginalized sectors of Philippine society.

Recognizing that the pork barrel system is one of the main sources of graft and
corruption and of patronage politics, the State shall ensure that measures designed
to eliminate the rules and practices of the pork barrel system are in place and that
the mechanisms of checks and balances are strengthened.

SECTION 3. Definitions. For purposes of this Act, the following terms shall
mean:

(a) Pork Barrel is a lump sum public fund assigned by law, regulation or practice
with sole discretion given to the President, legislator or group of legislators, or any
public officer. The exercise of discretion by public officers relates to the allocation,
release or use of these public funds, the identification or selection of projects,
implementors or beneficiaries, or any or a combination of or all of these.

(b) A lump sum appropriation is a single but divisible sum of money which serves
as a funding source for unspecified or multiple purposes and leaves the purposes of
the appropriation and their actual amounts for further determination after the
enactment of the appropriation law. Said appropriation is not itemized or does not
specify the program, activity or project or implementing government agency for
which it is appropriated, including the allotment class, beneficiaries, and other
matters required to be disclosed by government agencies in their budget estimates
under existing law.

(c) Impoundment is the act of not spending money appropriated by law.
Impoundment may be through rescission or cancellation of the appropriation, or
deferral or suspension of the release of the appropriated funds.

(d) National Official under this Act refers to the President, head of department or
national agency or his/her respective subordinate, agent, or authorized
representative, and any member of Congress.

(e) Savings refers to any available portion or balance in an appropriation item
under the law, which has become free from any obligation or encumbrance as a
result of (i) the completion or final discontinuance as certified by the President or
abandonment, due to fortuitous events, of the work, activity or purpose for which
the appropriation is authorized; or (ii) the non-payment of compensation and
related costs as a result of vacancies in positions and leaves of absence without
pay; or (iii) the implementation of measures resulting in improved systems and
efficiencies that enabled government agencies to meet and deliver the required or
planned targets, programs and services approved in an appropriation law at a lesser
cost.



5

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


SECTION 4. General mandatory rules governing appropriations and
disbursement of public funds.

(a) All proposed budgets submitted to the Philippines Congress shall contain only
itemized or line-item appropriations, except appropriations for the purpose of
disaster response, contingency fund of not more than 5% of the budget for a
specific item, and for the intelligence/confidential funds of the National Security
Council (NSC), the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Department of
Interior and Local Government (DILG).

(b) The expenditures from allowable lump sums shall be reported immediately to
Congress by the government agency to which the sum has been appropriated and
shall always be subject to a special audit by the Commission on Audit.

(c) All unspent, unreleased, and unobligated funds of any government agency by
the end of the fiscal year shall remain in or revert to the General Fund and shall not
thereafter be available for expenditure except by a subsequent appropriation law;
Provided, however, that the President, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of
the House of Representatives, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the
heads of Constitutional Commissions may authorize their respective government
agency or office to use the savings realized by the agency or office from its regular
budget during the fiscal year to augment any existing appropriation item for the
same agency or office under the general appropriations act; Provided, further, that
the augmentation may only be done during the same fiscal year when the savings
were realized; Provided, finally, that the power to realign or use savings may not
be delegated to other public officers.

SECTION 5. Appropriation of special funds. Within the fiscal year following the
approval of this Act, a report on the financial status of every account including but
not limited to the Malampaya fund, the Motor Vehicles Users Charges and other
off-budget items covered by a special law authorizing the continuous disbursement
of funds for a special purpose shall be submitted to Congress. Every fiscal year
thereafter, the President shall submit to Congress a proposed budget for the
disbursement of the special funds in accordance with their purpose as part of the
National Expenditure Program.

SECTION 6. Abolition of the Presidential Social Fund. The share of the
Government in the aggregate gross earnings of the Philippine Amusement and
Gaming Corporation provided under Section 12 of Presidential Decree No. 1869 as
amended by Presidential Decree No. 1993 shall henceforth be remitted regularly to
the National Treasury and may be used only pursuant to a valid appropriation made
by law. The discretionary authority of the President granted under the aforesaid
Section 12 to use the fund to finance the restoration of damaged or destroyed
facilities due to calamities is hereby revoked.



6

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


SECTION 7. Special Offenses. The penalty of imprisonment of six (6) years and
one day to ten (10) years and perpetual disqualification from public office shall be
imposed on the following persons for committing any of the following acts:

(a) Any national official who authorizes the spending of public money that is not
covered by or is in violation of any appropriation law;

(b) Any national official who, in violation of Section 4 (a), includes a lump sum
amount in any budget proposal submitted to Congress, or any member of Congress
who approves the inclusion of any lump sum amount in the general or
supplemental appropriations acts; Provided, that the appropriation of lump sums
for the purpose of disaster response, a contingency fund of not more than 5% of the
budget for a specific item, and for the intelligence fund of the NSC, DND and
DILG shall not be covered by this prohibition;

(c) Any national official who inserts in an appropriation bill provisions allowing
post-enactment intervention by a member or members of Congress in the
implementation of the appropriation measure;

(d) Any member of Congress, or his agent or representative, who directly or
indirectly intervenes or participates in the implementation of any appropriation law
through any post-enactment act or practice, including but not limited to
identification or endorsement of projects, beneficiaries or contractors, or assuming
authority or exercising influence in the release, allocation or realignment of
appropriated funds;

(e) Any national official who declares and utilizes savings outside of the cases
provided in Section 3(e) hereof, or realigns the improperly declared savings;

(f) Any national official who impounds any appropriation or portion thereof by
retention, reduction, rescission or deferral or suspension of release of funds, or any
other means, for whatever reason or purpose, unless there is an official declaration
by the President of an unmanageable National Government budget deficit.

(g) Any person including a private individual who persuades, induces, influences
or cooperates with any national official in violating any of the provisions of this
Act shall suffer the same penalty.

The above penalties shall be in addition to the criminal, civil and administrative
liabilities that the national official or private individual may incur under existing
laws.






7

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


SECTION 8. Diligence required; presumption. All public officers involved in the
approval, release and disbursement of funds shall exercise extraordinary diligence
in the performance of their functions. When an anomalous transaction is duly
proved, the public officer responsible for the approval, release or disbursement of
funds shall be presumed to have knowledge of the anomalous transaction.

SECTION 9. Repealing clause. Any law, presidential decree, executive order,
rule or regulation, or any issuance contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of
this Act, including Section 12 of PD 1869 as amended by PD 1993, is hereby
repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

SEC. 10. Amendment or repeal of this Act. This Act may only be repealed,
modified or amended by a law that has been approved by the people under the
system of initiative and referendum enshrined in the 1987 Constitution.

Effectivity Clause. This law shall become effective after fifteen (15) days
following the completion of its publication in two newspapers of general
circulation by the Commission on Elections.

Enacted this ____ day of ___________________________, through the system of
Peoples Initiative.


12. The herein proposition embraces only one subject the Pork Barrel
System and its abolition which is not one of the exceptions under Republic Act No.
6735.

PRAYER


WHEREFORE, premises considered, it is most respectfully prayed that this
Honorable Commission, after due consideration and verification, issue an Order:

1. Finding the Petition to be sufficient in form and substance pursuant to the
pertinent provisions of Republic Act No. 6735 and the implementing resolutions of
this Commission;

2. Directing the publication of the Petition in Filipino and English at least
twice in newspapers of general and local circulation; and








8

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


3. Calling a Referendum on a date set by the Commission, to be conducted
under its control and supervision, not earlier than forty-five (45) days but not later
than ninety (90) days after its Certification on the sufficiency of the Petition, to
allow the Filipino people to express their sovereign will on the proposition.


Petitioners pray for such other reliefs deemed just and equitable in the
premises.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES, __________________.



National Union of Peoples Lawyers
3
rd
Floor, Erythrina Building,
No. 1 Maaralin Street
Brgy Central, Quezon City
Tel. No. 02-920.6660

By:

_________________________
Lawyers Roll No. _________
IBP No. _________________
PTR No. _________________
Admitted to the Bar in ______
MCLE Compliance ________
Email address



_________________________
Lawyers Roll No. _________
IBP No. _________________
PTR No. _________________
Admitted to the Bar in ______
MCLE Compliance ________
Email address











9

Entitled An Act Abolishing the Pork Barrel System, this Act abolishes the
presidential and congressional pork barrel, mandates line item budgeting,
prohibits and criminalizes appropriation and use of lump sum discretionary
funds, penalizes violators with six years and one day to ten years imprisonment
and disqualification from holding public office.


We hereby affix our signatures for this Petition to enact legislation entitled An Act
Abolishing the Pork Barrel System through peoples initiative.


For District/Province/City/Municipality of:

Name

Address
Legislative
district

Signature
1.




2.




3.




4.




5.




6.




7.




8.




9.




10.