Bayan Muna Vows to File Bill Vs Pork Barrel

Despite the Supreme Court’s decision citing unconstitutionality the Priority Development and Assistance Fund (PDAF) commonly known as “pork barrel”, Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares would still want a law to stop fellow legislators from reinstating it.

In a press conference Wednesday at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Cebu office, Colmenares said that based from allegations, it appears that there are still members from the lower and upper chambers who have reportedly ill-spent their PDAF by donating it to bogus organizations.

Colmenares said if there is no law banning the resurrection of PDAF, it is likely that congressmen and senators would revive it, based from testimonies of the pending pork barrel case where these legislators have been allegedly milking the said funds for their own good.

Last year, President Aquino had issued a temporary order stopping the release of the PDAF following the controversial pork barrel scam involving Janet Lim-Napoles, who reportedly owns various bogus non-government organizations to which the some congressmen and senators had poured in substantial amount of their pork barrel.

Colmenares said to prevent the same from happening again, a law must be passed against reviving the pork barrel. He said the Abolish Pork Barrel Movement in Cebu will also gather signatures to support the bill he wished to file before the Congress soon.