MANILA — The Senate extended its session calendar to give lawmakers more time to review the proposed 2026 national budget, as Senate President Vicente Sotto III reiterated the chamber’s policy against what he called “blind ratification.”

During the regular session, the Senate approved a motion by Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri to move the resumption of session from Dec. 22 to Dec. 29 and the adjournment from Dec. 23 to Dec. 30. The extension allows completion of the bicameral conference committee report and preparation of the enrolled bill for the 2026 General Appropriations Act.

“There is a motion by the distinguished Majority Leader to amend the legislative calendar. So, if there is no objection, hearing none, the motion is approved with consent of the body,” Sotto said.

Sotto stressed that the Senate would not proceed with ratification without seeing an almost enrolled or fully enrolled copy of the budget, emphasizing the need for the final measure to be “very clean” and free from any insertions.

“As far as I’m concerned, while I’m Senate President gusto ko malinaw,” he said, adding that he wants to avoid a repeat of last year’s ratification based solely on a summary.

Senate Committee on Finance chairperson Sherwin Gatchalian said the extension will allow time for printing, reconciliation, and proofreading of the draft enrolled bill, which will be shared with senators and bicameral conferees ahead of ratification on Dec. 29.

“Our direction is to print the draft enrolled bill, share it with the bicam conferees as well as the other senators, and have the signing of the draft enrolled bill together with the bicameral conference committee report,” Gatchalian said, noting that the process is part of transparency measures for the 2026 budget.

Sotto reiterated that under the current Senate leadership, no rushed approval will be allowed without full visibility of the budget’s contents.

“For the record, this Congress, under our leadership, will never allow a blind ratification, ever,” he said.

Zubiri said the calendar extension was necessary to give senators sufficient time to study the enrolled copy and ensure it faithfully reflects what was approved by the bicameral conference committee, noting that the House of Representatives had made a similar adjustment.

Sotto also downplayed concerns about possible delays in the signing of the budget, saying a short reenactment of the previous year’s budget would not pose a problem if the review extends into early January.

“A few days or a week or so, walang problema ‘yun,” he said.

The proposed 2026 national budget is expected to be ratified by the Senate on Dec. 29 once the enrolled bill is finalized and circulated to all members.