“Compared to the record 30 bills approved during the first regular session under Villar, there were only 16 bills approved in the First Regular Session of the 12th Congress only eight in the same period of the 13th Congress.”
by Ducky Paredes
The Senate, under the leadership of Senate President Manny Villar is known for two things that seem contradictory: constant and unending very public investigations of stinky deals that the government seems so prone to and the great number of Senate bills passed under Villar’s leadership. The first has to be very irritating to Malacanang; the second – the fact that its legislative work is done with dispatch – has to be greatly appreciated by all.
In fact, unlike as in past Senates, the first regular session under Villar even passed several important bills that await the still pending counterpart version from the House of Representatives. The majority of these important measures have already been signed into law by President Arroyo.
Senate President Manny Villar observes that the Senate passed a record number of more than 30 bills on second and third reading. Of these, nine key measures address the plight of the Filipino masses during these difficult economic times.
Past congresses frittered away the first regular session and only went for bill approval during the succeeding second and third regular sessions. Thus, this is a first for the Senate!
Compared to the record 30 bills approved during the first regular session under Villar, there were only 16 bills approved in the First Regular Session of the 12th Congress only eight in the same period of the 13th Congress.
From July 2007 to May 31 this year, the Senate and its various committees conducted a total of 342 public hearings, 22 of which were related to the oversight functions of Congress to investigate allegations of graft and corruption in government. During the same period, the Office of the Senate President filed 333 bills and resolutions.
Villar said, “We believe these bills will play an important role in our campaign to improve the lives of the Filipino people in the face of widespread poverty and high prices of food and other basic commodities. I am happy to report to the nation, that despite the unwarranted criticisms, the Senate labored on and fulfilled its mandate to legislate measures designed to alleviate the plight of the masses.”
Of the more than 30 approved bills, the nine measures considered important were:
- R. A. No 9501 (S. B. No. 1646) – Promotes Entrepreneurship by Strengthening the Development and Assistance Programs to Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises. The new law encourages the establishments of micro, small and medium enterprises and ensures their continuing viability through entrepreneurship and skills development programs.
- R. A. No. 9502 (S. B. 1658) – Provides for Quality Affordable Medicines, which effectively aims to lower the medicine prices in the country and make it within the reach of poor Filipinos.
- S. B. No. 1662 – Provides for Additional Benefits and Protection to Housekeepers (Kasambahay). Employers must provide a written employment contract in a language known to the housekeepers, which shall include their fixed number of working hours, regular days off, sleeping quarter arrangements, and their annual salary increase.
- S. B. No. 1882 – Establishes a Provident Personal Savings Plan, Known as the Personal Equity and Retirement Account (PERA). This promotes capital market development and savings mobilization by establishing a legal and mandatory framework of retirement plans for persons, comprised of voluntary personal savings and investments.
- S. B. No 1648 – Extends the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF). This bill extends the ACEF program which provides funds for irrigation, farm to market roads, post harvest equipment, and other farming facilities to enhance the competitiveness of Philippine agriculture.
- R. A. No 9499 (S. B. 1659) – Allows Filipino World War II veterans to Continue Receiving Philippine Government Pensions and Benefits even when Similar Pensions and Benefits are Provided by the U.S. government.
- S.B. No 2293 – An Act Amending Sections 22, 24, 34, 35, 51, and 79 of Republic Act No. 8424, as Amended, Otherwise Known as the National Revenue Code of 1997. This bill seeks to increase the take home pay of the minimum wage earners by providing them more tax exemptions.
- S. B. No 2408 – Providing for Additional Support and Compensation for Educators in Basic Education; and,
- R. A. 9504 – An Act Amending Sections 22, 24, 34, 35, and 79 of Republic Act 8424, as Amended, otherwise known as the National Internal Revenue Code of 1987. The law exempts minimum wage earners in the private sector and their counterparts in the public sector from paying income tax.
By proving that the Senate can multi-task: do its legislative work even as various Senate committees delve into noisy and very public newsy and noisy investigations, Senate President Manny Villar has shown that the Senate works!
In a typical Villar gesture, the Senate President commended his colleagues for the fortitude and commitment they displayed amid the numerous Senate investigations in connection with questionable transactions by the executive branch. The reality, though, may be that without Manny Villar at the helm, the Senate might not have done its main job as well.
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“There isn’t a man in the Senate who doesn’t think he is better suited to be President than the President, and thinks he might have been President except for luck.” - Calvin Coolidge, former U.S. President
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“What are we in power for? Why should we pretend to be saints when in reality we are not? We are not angels. When we die we will all go to hell. It is better to be in hell because in that place there are no investigations, no Secretary of Justice, no Secretary of the Interior to go after us. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He made a distinction between the good crook and the bad crook. We can aspire to be good crooks.” Senate President Jose Avelino, lecturing President Elpidio Quirino on the realities of Philippine Politics.
President Quirino replied: “I am no saint … but when public opinion demands an investigation, we have to go through the formality of ordering one.”
Avelino was investigated by the Senate, found guilty of tax evasion and was suspended for one year. – January 1949
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hvp 07.18.08)
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