MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court has set oral arguments on April 8 and April 22 on the four consolidated petitions for certiorari assailing the legality of unprogrammed appropriations and special accounts in the 2024, 2025 and 2026 national budgets. In a press release issued yesterday, SC spokesperson Camille Ting said the oral arguments on both dates will be held at the SC Session Hall in Baguio City at 10 a.m. Prior to the oral arguments, a preliminary conference will be held on Feb. 4 at the SC Session Hall in Manila. The petitioners were specifically seeking the nullification of various adjustments made by the bicameral conference committees in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2024, 2025 and 2026, which effectively inflated the government’s national budget for those years. The SC noted that among the provisions in the 2025 GAA being questioned by the FPJPM was the increased line-item appropriation for the Department of Public Works and Highways’ Special Road Fund to P34.748 billion from P16.756 billion.

Source: Philippine Star January 23, 2026 16:06 UTC