MANILA -- Malacañang expressed confidence that the budget concerns of the Commission on Elections will be addressed by the Department of Budget and Management soon.

In a press briefing aired over government-owned dzRB Radyo ng Bayan, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said that officials from both departments had begun discussions into the budget requirements of the Comelec, which had undergone severe cuts in the proposed 2013 General Appropriations Act.

Comelec chair Sixto Brillantes warned last week the possibility of next year’s midterm elections reverting back to manual counting after the DBM slashed the Commission’s budget from P24-billion to P8-billion.

“Yes we are confident (that the DBM and Comelec will come to a resolution regarding the budget concerns of the Comelec),” Valte said.

In fact, the budget officers of the DBM and Comelec met last week to start reconciling and addressing the concerns of the Comelec,” she added.*PNA

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