MANILA – Subsidies to government-owned and controlled corporations contracted by 10.04 percent to P 11.41 billion as of last May against year-ago’s P12.67 billion.

Department of Finance data show that bulk of the subsidies in the first five months were given to the National Food Authority at P2 billion followed by the P2.07 billion given to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation or PhilHealth.

The government now shoulders the full amount of PhilHealth premiums of the 3.41 million indigent-beneficiaries under its universal health care program for the poor after the Department of Justice authorized the government to use P 8.3 billion for this purpose.

The budget is part of NHIP’s P 12 billion allocation for indigents for this year.

Relatively, a total of P1.56 billion was extended to the National Electrification Administration as of last May while the National Housing Authority received P1.2 billion and the Philippine Coconut Authority, P 656 million.

For last May alone, subsidies totaled to P 3.52 billion, 35 percent lower than the P 5.49 billion in the same period last year.

The number one beneficiary of the subsidies is the NFA at P 2 billion followed by the NEA at P 1 billion and PCA at P 180 million.

The NHA received P 100 million and the Cultural Center of the Philippines P49 million during the same period.*PNA

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