Bill naming ‘balangay‘ as national boat returned to Senate committee level

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has reverted a measure seeking to name the balangay as the national boat from the plenary to the committee level for more public hearings.

During Monday’s plenary session, House Bill No. 4953 was returned to the Committee of Basic Education, Arts and Culture, upon the request of the panel’s chairman, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian.

The said bill was contained under Committee Report 102.

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said Gatchalian made the request through an official letter, which stated that the committee got hold of “some very important new matters” after the measure was earlier reported out to the plenary.

“I believe the committee should consider these new matters allowing new resource persons and experts, including a marine archeologist, whose relevant study on the balangays need to be presented and discussed in a public hearing,” Gatchalian’s letter read.

“He [Gatchalian] wants it referred back for more committee hearings,” Zubiri said.

During the period of interpellations on the bill last September 2, Senator Minority Leader Franklin Drilon quizzed Gatchalian on the basis of declaring the balangay as the national boat.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III commended Gatchalian for his “humility” in proposing to have the measure returned to his committee.

“Senator Gatchalian is made of good stuff because this is rare that a senator allows a committee report, something that is on the floor already, to be brought back to the committee,” Sotto said.

“That is a practice of humility,” he added.

The Senate President then recalled a similar situation that happened to him in 1993 when he had to revert a measure to the committee level after a group of indigenous people said they were not consulted on a bill he sponsored as then-Senate tourism committee chair.

“When I was chairman of the committee on tourism, we declared a tourist zone in Palawan When it was on the floor and I was already sponsoring it, a group of indigenous people went to see Sen. Edgardo Angara and told him that they were not invited during hearings in the House and especially the Senate,” he said.

“He [Angara] was asking me to bring it back myself instead of him making the motion,” he added.

Sotto said one of his colleagues then told him not to agree with pulling back his measure.

Still, Sotto said he chose to revert the said measure to his committee for more discussions.

“Pride is the head of Satan, humility is his headache and so I brought it back to the committee,” he said.

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