A lawmaker on Thursday warned that a possible re-enactment of the 2025 national budget in 2026 would amount to a “re-enactment of corruption,” urging the Bicameral Conference Committee (Bicam) to ensure the timely passage of a clean and corruption-free spending plan.

In a statement, Akbayan Party-list Representative Perci Cendaña stressed that Congress must prevent the possibility of a re-enactment of the 2025 national budget.

"Our citizens deserve a national budget that is rid of corruption, patronage and abuse," Cendaña emphasized.

Cendaña said certain budgetary items should no longer be included in the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), particularly unprogrammed appropriations and allocations he described as highly questionable, as these allegedly open doors to misuse of public funds even after the budget has been enacted.

"This means eliminating opportunities for abuse of highly questionable items in the national budget such as the unprogrammed appropriations (UA), questionable allocations for farm-to-market roads (FMR), Medical Assistance for Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP), and other budgetary items which allow members of Congress to control public funds after the national budget's enactment," he said.

Despite concerns over possible delays, Cendaña expressed optimism that the 2026 GAB can still be ratified on time, noting that there remains sufficient time for Congress to complete the bicam deliberations without interruption.

"There is still enough time before the end of the year to accomplish a corruption-free national budget,” the lawmaker added.

Earlier, both the House of Representatives and the Senate agreed to extend their session until December 29 to allow the ratification of the proposed 2026 national budget.

Nueva Ecija Representative and the House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Mikaela Suansing said both chambers are set to amend their legislative calendars on Monday, December 22.

The budget ratification was originally scheduled for December 22, which was also intended to be the last session day before the Christmas break. However, Suansing said the Bicameral Conference Committee secretariat would not be able to immediately complete its report for ratification, necessitating the extension of congressional sessions.

Lawmakers reiterated that preventing a budget re-enactment is crucial to maintaining fiscal discipline and ensuring that public funds are allocated transparently and responsibly for 2026.