are limited and needs and aspirations are sharply rising.”
- Agency for International Development
Given the University of the Philippines System’s thrust of being the foremost provider of tertiary and advanced education in the country, the government has consistently funded the University relatively much higher as compared to other state universities and colleges (SUCs) in the country. As a matter of fact, almost 1/3 of the annual budget allocation for higher education goes to the UP System, hence, the analogy of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (Fernandez, Philippine Star) in reference to the fact that the UP System gets the lion’s share of the Philippines' Commission on Higher Education (CHED) budget.
Briones quoted Kohler’s definition of budget as a financial plan which serves as the pattern for and control over future operations, and as a systematic plan for the utilization of manpower, material or other resources.
Using the above-mentioned definition to assess the UP budget, this student cannot help but notice one prominent feature of the UP budget from 2003-2009: the consistent increases in allotments for infrastructure and other capital outlay related items, and so with personnel services.
As a trend, the budget allocation for UP increases annually, except for the fiscal years 2005 and 2006 (2005 reenacted budget) wherein the said annual budget was lower by 4% or P177,302,000 as compared to the budget allotments for 2003 and 2004 (2003 reenacted budget). Of significance is the leap in general allotment from 2003 (P4,340,096,000) to 2009 (P7,058,087,000), which marked a 62.63% increase from the former budget or an addition of P2,717,991,000 in just a 4-year gap period.
Definitely the difference in budget allocation could be attributed to many factors. Among others, inflation adjustment may be a key point of reference (as reflected by the consistent huge increases in MOOE within the period under scrutiny), so with the increase in maintenance and operating expenses as a result of past acquisition/establishment of additional capital investments.
But more to inflation adjustments for MOOE, the increase in the salary of UP personnel as an effect of the government policy of increasing government employees’ salary via the Salary Standardization Laws (SSL) was also reflected by the P596,358,000 Personnel Services (PS) budget gap between that of 2009 and 2003, or an increase of 17.28% using the 2003 allocation for PS as a base. Assuming that UP did not hire a significant number of additional personnel before 2009, the effect of SSL could be better quantified by comparing the PS allocation for 2008 (P3,696,421,000) with that of 2009 (P4,048,017,000), wherein we could easily notice a significant increase of 9.52% equivalent to P351,596,000, which is but an adjustment in deference to the SSL3 implemented last July 2009.
"The University of the Philippines System takes pride in being the pioneer in higher education through academic excellence, outstanding research, public service, and modernized facilities... By streamlining functions, encouraging innovation and creativity in its course offerings, as well as developing its technological and physical infrastructure, UP hopes to meet the demands of the changing times and take its place as one of the best in the region, and eventually, the world." (UP Website)
That public budgeting serves as the allocation of expenditures among different purposes to achieve the greatest results has been better understood by this student upon taking a peek on the annual UP budget allocations. Being the pilot university of the country’s tertiary education system and given the fierce international and local competition in terms of education standards, it is quite understandable why the UP administration (as supported by the government) wants to increase if not further improve its infrastructures, amenities, and other capitals both human and nonhuman. UP is apparently operating this “facelifts” because it projects itself as one of the near future’s best providers of tertiary education and graduate studies in this region. This vision is the backbone of UP’s quest for better amenities, state of the art equipments and efficient and highly qualified faculty and personnel, thus the rationale behind the general increase in PS and CO allotments from 2003-2009.
As noble yet ambitious as it may sound, the budgetary allocations of UP for infrastructure and equipment acquisition (capital outlay), especially those of 2008 and 2009, reflect UP’s plans and actions toward the [incremental] realization of the Vision. The government supports UP’s quest, but so does some foreign organizations through the foreign funds/assistance that the UP budget allocations from 2003-2009 project.
With all the huge amounts of money given to UP by both the national government and foreign donors, one cannot help but think that UP is indeed the favorite university of the government. But when one scrutinizes the budget, it would be a revelation to know that UP is not as super-blessed as the budget appears to project. For one, the UP budget includes the operation, support to operation and maintenance of the Philippine General Hospital, which comprises almost one third of the total UP System’s budget for programs. Furthermore, UP Diliman is not the sole campus of the UP System since the System covers seven constituent universities located in various parts of the country. Hence, the budget allocation for the UP System is not sufficient to cover all the expenditure necessary to attain or respond to the various mandates set upon to the University, not to mention the Vision that UP has imposed upon itself.
It would perhaps be of consolation to the UP administration if indeed the national government gives the budget allocation to the last centavo. However, and as was experienced by my College [in the University], there was an item included in UP’s budget under the 2007 GAA that was not delivered. This student is referring to the 2007 budget allocation of up to P5million (but Prof
Briones wrote that there is a recognition by the national leadership that the allocation of the limited resources of the government via the GAA is one that is based on need, not want. Given the effect of inflation, the cut-throat competition for fund allocation among the different government agencies, the adjustments needed to appease employees’ unions, and concessions to student demand for cheaper cost of UP education, the high price of modernization and competence-building, and many more tasks and financial constraints at hand, the University of the Philippines is faced with the challenge on how to stretch its coffers so as to meet the mandates and attain the University’s vision.
