Manila: Sen. Francis Escudero on Monday called for stronger budget safeguards through making feasibility studies and technology-based tracking mechanisms mandatory before any project is included in the national budget.

According to Philippines News Agency, Escudero said under his proposed Senate Bill No. 1461, or the Infrastructure Appropriations Integrity Act, no project should be funded without a thorough technical and financial feasibility study, complete with detailed unit price analyses, standard costs of materials and quantity estimates that are publicly accessible.

"All proposed projects must be vetted; otherwise, they should not receive a single centavo in public funds," he emphasized, adding that each project should have station numbers, geotagging, and geodetic coordinates so that "anyone can verify if work is actually being done or if it remains idle while funds continue to be released."

He also sought to prohibit budget splitting, or dividing appropriations for infrastructure projects into multiple phases, citing its use to circumvent budget and procurement rules. "Splitting of government contracts has long been prohibited under Republic Act 9184. It is meant to prevent schemes that enable corruption," Escudero stated.

Escudero urged Senate Finance Committee Chair Sherwin Gatchalian to incorporate the transparency provisions of his bill into the 2026 national budget as a general or special provision under concerned agencies.