The House of Representatives. INQUIRER FILE
MANILA, Philippines — Officials of the House of Representatives want to improve Malacaang-Senate collaboration as this will help prevent the President’s vetoes.
House members, including Majority Floor Leader and Zamboanga 2nd District Rep. Manuel Jose Dalipe, Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo, and PBA Rep. Margarita Nograles, said on Tuesday they aim to facilitate the passage of measures by
interacting with the executive branch and other legislative bodies.
According to Dalipe, they want to avoid wasting time by refiling vetoed measures and debating them again, when disputes may be resolved by meeting with the Senate and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“We are closely coordinating with Malacañang and the Senate so that we can avoid vetoing of a measure which is a waste of time and resources. Under the leadership of Speaker Martin (Romualdez), we are working with our counterparts to ensure the smooth passage of important bills,” Dalipe said during the Ugnayan sa Batasan Majority News Forum.
“With the leadership of Senate under (Senate President) Migz Zubiri, Speaker of the House Martin Romualdez, ang ating President, mahal na Pangulong (our beloved President) Bongbong Marcos, mas maganda ito (this would be better), we will be able to achieve more for the legislative agenda,” he added.
Quimbo said one good move by Romualdez is utilizing the Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (Ledac), which they believe is cost-efficient and time-saving.
Quimbo apparently attended the Ledac meeting held last Thursday.
“Most important ‘yong statement ng ating mahal na Speaker, sabi niya it is very important at this point in time of course not only effective legislation but cost-effective legislation. In other words, ayaw nating magkaroon ng veto, magastos ang vetoed bill. Ang sabi ni Speaker let us use the Ledac as a platform to ensure that our legislation [will be approved with dispatch],” she said.
(Most important is the statement of our beloved Speaker, who said that it is vital at this point not only effective legislation but cost-effective legislation. In other words, we do not want to have a veto because vetoed bills are expensive. The Speaker suggested that we use the Ledac platform to ensure that our legislation [will be approved with dispatch].)
Part of the discussions of the Ledac and the technical working group, Quimbo noted, was to assess the problems with the bills from the 18th Congress that Marcos vetoed.
“The first Ledac-TWG meeting was held last week, ang pinaka-importante (the most important thing) is to ensure that we will be able to pass the swiftest possible time the 19 legislative priority measures that have been identified by the President,” she explained.
“Kasama doon ang pagbabaliktanaw kung anong nangyari in the past Congress, at anong naging problema particularly doon sa vetoed bills,” she added.
(That includes reviewing the last Congress and vetoed measures..)
Marcos rejected many proposals from the 18th Congress that Rodrigo Duterte couldn’t sign, including a law that would have established Bulacan Airport City, a special economic zone and freeport.
The President warned of hazards to finances and taxes if the law passed, forcing Rep. Joey Salceda to draft a new version with revisions.
READ: Bongbong Marcos vetoes bill on Bulacan Airport City ecozone
Marcos also recently vetoed a bill that would have removed tax being deducted from the honoraria of poll workers, angering teachers and other volunteers who worked during the 2022 national elections. Marcos also vetoed a bill that would have expanded a Davao electric company’s coverage, and another that should have established the Philippine Transportation Safety Board (PTSB).
READ: Teachers decry veto of tax break for election service
On August 2, Senate Majority Floor Leader Joel Villanueva said that a Ledac meeting should eventually happen after Senator Francis Escudero called a “bill-vetoing spree.”
READ: Ledac meeting expected soon after ‘bill-vetoing spree’ – Villanueva
Malacañang denied that Marcos was doing this, with Press Secretary Trixie Cruz Angeles saying that only five laws have been vetoed while 41 other bills have lapsed into law.
READ: Palace denies Bongbong Marcos is on a vetoing spree