Irrigation office received largest gov’t subsidy in Feb

Subsidies given away by the national government to state-run corporations jumped 276 percent year-on-year to P9.993 billion in February, with the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) receiving the biggest chunk for the second straight month.

The latest Bureau of the Treasury data showed that subsidies extended to government-owned and/or -controlled corporations (GOCCs) last February jumped from P2.658 billion during the same month last year.

The NIA received P8.957 billion or almost 90 percent of the subsidies granted in February.

On its website, the NIA said it was the GOCC mainly responsible for irrigation development and management in the country.

Last January, the NIA was also the top recipient of subsidies amounting to P745 million or 59 percent of the total.

Subsidies received by the NIA already reached P9.702 billion as of end-February, accounting for 86 percent of the two-month total of P11.259 billion.

In 2016, the NIA was the second largest recipient of GOCC subsidies totaling P16.909 billion, exceeded only by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.’s (PhilHealth) P43.776 billion.

Last year, the national government gave away a record P103.2 billion in subsidies.

For 2017, the government had programmed to grant P128.9 billion to GOCCs.