President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” C. Aquino III has ordered the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to ensure transparency and accountability in the distribution and use of “pork barrel” funds to lawmakers.

Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the President wants to prevent allegations of corruption and other anomalies in the utilization of the pork barrel allotted to senators and congressmen.

Earlier, Aquino expressed his desire to retain the pork barrel fund, but pledged to ensure the wise and equitable distribution of resources.

He said that spending should be restricted to a menu of priority projects to remove the perception that the pork barrel is a source of corruption in government.

“Pork barrel as a concept is sound. It’s its implementation that’s being abused. That’s why under the idea of PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) under President Aquino, the pork barrel funds will have to be accounted for. They will be transparent,” Lacierda said in a media forum aired over government radio.

Lacierda said he has talked to Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad who has cited the need for transparency and accountability in the use of government resources.

Abad had already made it clear that the Palace will publish names of lawmakers who received the funds and closely monitor the implementation of the concerned projects.

“The positions of Secretary Abad and President Aquino are clear that the use of pork barrel funds should be transparent and accountable to prevent insinuation and allegations of graft and corruption,” said Lacierda.

He said the Palace is opposed to any cuts in the pork barrel fund since “it would also mean cutting down on the social services for a particular district of a particular congressman or congresswoman.”

Rather than slash the pork allocation, he said, it is imperative “to improve the way the pork barrel is implemented.”

Quezon Rep. Lorenzo Tañada III, a Liberal Party (LP) stalwart, had earlier proposed reducing the pork to P40 million from P70 million for congressmen and to P130 million from P200 million for senators in a bid to stop the swelling budget deficit and avoid imposition of new taxes.

But the President has reportedly called the attention of Tañada who said his proposal was only a personal opinion.

Some groups claimed that the pork barrel has allegedly been misused by lawmakers working with contractors in the building of poor roads, bridges, school buildings, among others.