House set to OK 3 new bills to fight pandemic

MANILA, Philippines — The special House panel on coronavirus is poised to approve on Tuesday three new bills responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the proposed P548-billion Philippine Economic Stimulus Act (Pesa) and the Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer (FIST) Act.

The third bill is a measure that would penalize acts of discrimination against any person who has contracted the coronavirus or is under suspicion of it, as well as health-care workers and others on the front lines of the anti-COVID-19 effort, House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said.

“The COVID-19 ad hoc committee will approve tomorrow (Tuesday) morning the reports of the committee on banks, the economic stimulus response package subcommittee, and the peace and order subcommittee regarding the FIST, Pesa, and the Antidiscrimination Bill, respectively,” the Leyte lawmaker said.

In a statement, Romualdez said he expected swift action once the bills were referred to the plenary for approval on second reading.

“Immediately after consideration, the committee reports and recommendations are scheduled for plenary deliberations to address the unprecedented health crisis,” he said.