Senator Panfilo Lacson (left) and Senate President Vicente Sotto III (right). Photo from Lacson-Sotto media bureau
BOGO CITY, Cebu — While the Senate reached out to the executive department about the exact revisions to be made on the disapproved security of tenure bill, it received “no response” except for the veto message.
Senator Panfilo Lacson revealed this Thursday after Malacañang responded to the remarks made by Senate President Vicente Sotto III about the undelivered 2016 campaign promise of President Rodrigo Duterte to end labor contractualization in the country.
Lacson and Sotto are running for president and vice president, respectively, in this year’s general elections.
“We want to find out so Congress can adjust, kung ano ‘yung shortcomings doon sa bill na inapprove and then na-veto…even beyond the veto message, dapat sabihin ng Malacañang, ‘Heto ‘yung kulang, ito sana ‘yung gusto namin.’ There was no response,” Lacson told reporters here before his town hall meeting with residents.
(We want to find out so Congress can adjust, whatever the shortcomings are in the bill that was approved and then vetoed…even beyond the veto message, Malacañang should have told us, ‘This is missing, this is what we want.’ There was no response.)
“Tinanong ni SP (Senate President) ‘yun eh, ‘Ano ba ‘yung gusto ninyo rito, para i-adjust namin.’ But there was no response from the economic managers,” he added.
(SP asked them ‘What do you want with this bill, so we can make adjustments.’ But there was no response from economic managers.)
On Wednesday, Sotto took a swipe at a 2016 campaign promise to end labor contractualization.
Congress passed a bill seeking to protect workers’ rights by removing the ambiguities in laws that prohibit labor-only contracting. But in 2019, President Duterte vetoed it.
In response to Sotto, acting presidential spokesperson Secretary Martin Andanar said the bill Congress submitted to Malacañang then “unduly broadens the scope and definition of prohibited labor-only contracting, effectively proscribing forms of contractualization that are not particularly unfavorable to employees involved.”
“The President hopes that Congress would rectify the vetoed provisions as he remains committed to eradicating all forms of abusive employment practices and protecting the workers’ right to security of tenure,” Andanar said.
Asked if the Senate is open to doing this, Lacson answered in the affirmative, provided that there is enough time.
“If there is time, yes, why not? And if Sec. Piñol will be in the next Congress, I think he will pursue that,” he said, referring to former Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol, who is running for senator under the Lacson-Sotto tandem.
Lacson, however, reiterated that the Senate did communicate with the executive branch regarding the vetoed bill.
“Nag-communicate na nga sa kanila ‘yung Senate, tinatanong ‘ano ba talaga ang gusto ninyo so we can make adjustments’…sabi ni SP, hindi nag-respond,” he said again.
(The Senate communicated with them, asked them ‘what do you really want so we can make adjustments’…SP said they did not respond.)
Labor groups had slammed Duterte’s unfulfilled vow to end labor contractualization, saying his promise was a “farce.”