By Argyll Cyrus Geducos  Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado on Wednesday said the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) is working on the proposed "labor-intensive" P4.3-trillion 2021 budget before President Duterte's State of the Nation Address (SONA) next month. "Ang atin pong proposed budget for next year ay nasa P4.3 trillion. Tumaas ito bahagya (It increased for a bit)," Avisado said in an interview over state-run PTV-4 on Wednesday. "We expect to be able to pass this on to the President kung hindi man po namin maisasabay sa kanyang SONA, ay baka sa second week ng August (if we can't make it on his SONA, then on the second week of August)," he added. According to Avisado, the DBM is already conducting a technical budget review of the proposed budgets of the different departments. They will start the executive budget review in the first week of July. He said the programs are geared towards the national government's effort to fight COVID-19. "In-line pa rin (This is still in line) with our desire to precisely continue to combat this pandemic and at the same time provide the kind of programs, activities, and projects for our people, lalo na yung mga nawalan ng trabaho at meron silang mapagkukunan (especially to displaced workers so they can have a livelihood)," Avisado said. "We will concentrate more on labor-intensive projects and activities to give income opportunities to the most vulnerable and most affected sectors," he added. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque had earlier said that the government is crafting the country's "first COVID-19 national budget" for 2021. "Siyempre ang buong budget nakatutok pa rin sa COVID-19 habang wala pa tayong bakuna (The entire budget will be focused on COVID-19 while there is no vaccine)," he said in April. "May mga ilang proyekto doon na kinakailangan na sigurong isakripisyo para ibigay ang pangangailangan ng ating kababayan (There will be some projects that may be sacrificed to respond to the needs of our countrymen)," he added. Ombudsman probe Avisado also said the DBM is ready to cooperate with the investigation of the Office of the Ombudsman on the alleged misuse of COVID-19 funds. "Kami naman dito sa DBM ay nakahanda. Bukas nga isusumite na namin ang mga dokumentong hinihingi sa amin ng Ombudsman para makatulong sa imbestigasyon (We are ready to cooperate. Tomorrow we will submit the documents that the Ombudsman is asking from us to help in their investigation)," he said. According to Avisado, the government, so far, has spent P335,677,151,125 for its COVID-19 response efforts. Of the said figure, P247.2 billion were pooled from the budgets of the different departments as ordered by President Duterte.