President Rodrigo Roa Duterte immediately submitted to Congress a proposed 2018 obligation budget of P3.77 trillion right after his State of the Nation Address (SONA). The proposed budget is 12.4 percent higher than the P3.40 trillion budget in 2017. It is equivalent to 21.6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), slightly higher than the 21.1 percent in 2017. To effect real change, the President stated in his 2018 Budget Message that the government must adopt a more activist budget aimed at fulfilling the longing of the Filipino people for a better life “in peaceful and safer communities, with enhanced opportunities for advancement, and supported by convenient, reliable services from their government”.>>read complete document
