SUBSIDIES to state-run corporations tripled to P3.692 billion in the first quarter as more agencies enjoyed financial support from the national government.
The latest Bureau of the Treasury data showed that the first-quarter subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) were 201-percent more than the P1.23 billion given away during the first three months of last year.
Subsidies last January amounted P145 million, then increased to P685 million in February. Last March, the amount of GOCC subsidies jumped to P2.86 billion.
In the first quarter, the biggest recipient of government subsidies was the National Electrification Administration with P731 million. Among the recipients of subsidies were: Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (P10 million); Cultural Center of the Philippines (P64 million); Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (P69 million); Development Academy of the Philippines (P27 million); IBC-13 (P15 million); Local Waterworks and Utilities Administration (P151 million); Lung Center of the Philippines (P68 million); National Dairy Authority (P38 million); National Home Mortgage and Finance Corp. (P250 million); National Irrigation Administration (P406 million); National Kidney and Transplant Institute (P103 million); National Power Corp. (P164 million); Philippine Coconut Authority (P71 million); Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (P29 million); Philippine Children’s Medical Center (P607 million); Philippine Heart Center (P159 million); Philippine National Railways (P106 million); Philippine Postal Corp. (P301 million); Philippine Rice Research Institute (P121 million); People’s Television Network Inc. (P25 million); Tourism Promotions Board (P125 million), and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority (P13 million).
Last year, the government granted GOCCs subsidies totaling P80.44 billion—the largest annual amount to date and over a fifth more than 2013’s P66.329 billion.