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GOVERNMENT SPENT OVER P15.4M OF TAXPAYER’S MONEY FOR FILIPINO CONTINGENT IN IRAQ
by GABRIELA Women's Party
Wednesday, Jul. 14, 2004 at 3:08 PM
gabwp@tri-isys.com 9251993 127B Scout Fuentebella, QC
The Filipino contingent in Iraq, whose presence has now endangered the life of Angelo dela Cruz and at least 4,000 Overseas Filipino Workers in Iraq, is worth at least 15.4M of taxpayer’s money.
GOVERNMENT SPENT OVER P15.4M OF TAXPAYER’S MONEY FOR FILIPINO CONTINGENT IN IRAQ
GABRIELA Women’s Partylist Representative Liza Largoza Maza today said the Filipino contingent in Iraq, whose presence has now endangered the life of Angelo dela Cruz and at least 4,000 Overseas Filipino Workers in Iraq, is worth at least 15.4M of taxpayer’s money.
According to Maza, going by the $500 allowance per person for each member of the Filipino contingent in Iraq, this would already translate to roughly $25,000 per month or P1.4M per month for a contingent composed of 51 individuals. It has roughly been eleven months since the first Filipino contingent arrived in Iraq. It was then composed of 97 individuals.
“In the midst of a ballooning budget deficit and and a hostage crisis that is staring the Arroyo government right in the face, it is apalling to think that the Philippine government actually spent over 15.4M,” said Maza.
Maza cited that P15.4M could have been used to employ an additional 1760 teachers, or build 495 new classrooms. “The same amount could have been spent on poverty alleviation programs which could have helped in keeping more Filipinos from wanting to leave the country, like Angelo dela Cruz.”
“There should now be no more question as to whether Filipino troops should stay in Iraq. In the first place, sending a Filipino contingent is not only an unwise fiscal decision; it was a decision that put the lives of Filipinos at risk. More importantly, it was a declaration of support to an unjust occupation of a sovereign land,” Maza concluded. #
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