SENATOR JOKER Arroyo is still Congress' undisputed Scrooge.

For the 12th straight year, Arroyo has maintained his reputation as the most frugal legislator, spending only 8.1 million pesos from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2002, according to an audit of senators' expenses based on Commission on Audit regulations.

The head of the powerful Blue Ribbon Committee, Arroyo also incurred the lowest expenses in 2001 (5.39 million pesos), the year he assumed his Senate seat, carrying over the badge of parsimony he had earned while serving a full nine-year term in the House of Representatives.

The list showed Arroyo spent only 8,132,867.75 pesos for the salaries of his staff, as well as expenses for meetings, conferences and office supplies. He also did not charge for any foreign travel, professional or consultancy fees and had no office space and equipment rentals and capital outlay against the Senate budget.

Just as thrifty was Senator Juan Flavier, who spent 9.4 million pesos in 2002. The mid-range spenders were Senators Edgardo Angara (10.4 million pesos), Manuel Villar (10.6 million pesos) and Sergio Osmeña III (10.9 million pesos).

On the other side of the aisle, opposition Senator Vicente Sotto III topped the list of Senate high rollers.

Sotto disbursed taxpayer's money to the tune of 12.6 million pesos, followed closely by Senators Ralph Recto (12.4 million pesos), Aquilino Pimentel Jr. (12.3 million pesos) and John Osmeña (12.1 million pesos).

Senate President Franklin Drilon, former Majority Leader Loren Legarda and the rest of the senators belonged to the mid-range spenders, spending 11 million pesos and above each. And while Senator Panfilo Lacson had waived his 2003 pork barrel allocation, Arroyo had not bothered to touch his at all.

Based on the same list, Sotto also had the most number of staffers who could be the most pampered employees in the Senate, receiving 7.3 million pesos in salaries and benefits. In comparison, Arroyo's staff only received a total package of 791,338 pesos. Angara spent 2.1 million pesos in professional or consultancy fees, compared to Drilon's 8,900 pesos.

Asked earlier why he had only two staff members and a driver, Arroyo said: "Well, I have a very efficient staff."

Since close to half of the populace is wallowing in poverty, he said spending more than what the legislative work really entailed was immoral. Although he was understaffed in the House, Arroyo boasted that he logged 100 percent attendance for nine years. In the Senate, Arroyo and Flavier have the best attendance records.

Arroyo received a heavy volume of mail, more than any congressman at any given time during his three terms in the House.

"It was not very convenient. I had to sort and read the mail myself and send out written replies."

He also wrote his press releases by hand when he was a congressman. In the Senate, he still writes his own statements, but these are now either typewritten or printed on a computer.