SENATOR Paolo Benigno ‘Bam’ Aquino IV today, September 25, filed a bill that would put the national budget on a blockchain system, a move he says will combat corruption and make every peso of public spending transparent to citizens.
Senate Bill 1330, or the “National Budget Blockchain Act,” aims to establish a digital ledger to track allocations and disbursements in real time.
“No one is crazy enough to put their transactions on blockchain, where every single step of the way will be logged and transparent to every single citizen,” Aquino said.
The senator said the measure directly responds to long-standing public frustration over “ghost projects” and alleged irregularities in multi-billion-peso flood control programs.
“Ang mga pondong nawala sa mga ghost flood control projects, sana nakapagtayo ng mga silid-aralan,” Aquino said, citing a shortage of more than 166,000 classrooms nationwide.
He added that lost funds could instead address urgent needs such as education.
“Magkano yung binayad sa contractor, yung ginamit na semento, bakal — magkano? That will be tracked, and that’s on the blockchain, and nobody can change that,” Aquino said.
Under the proposal, the Department of Information and Communications Technology would implement the system in coordination with the Department of Budget and Management and the Commission on Audit.
Aquino said digitization would ensure better governance.
“Less na yung mga racket, less na yung mga proyektong alanganin, and really focus on things na papunta sa tao directly,” he said.
If passed, the Philippines would be among the first countries to adopt blockchain technology for public budgeting, Aquino said, adding that the bill could help restore public trust in government spending.
