Busy week ahead for Senate – Enrile

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Senate will tackle priority bills as soon as it resumes its plenary sessions next week, Senator Juan Ponce Enrile said.
In a statement to media, Enrile said the Senate will also resume the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona on Monday after a six-week recess.

Meanwhile, plenary sessions will resume on Tuesday, Enrile said adding that senators will tackle pending bills, such as Senate Bill No. 3009 that seeks to amend the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), SBN 3098 or the proposed Competition Act and SBN 2865 or the Reproductive Health Bill.

The Senate is also expected to deliberate on the proposed Terrorist Financing Suppression Act before the adjournment of its second regular session.
The Senate had to rearrange its schedule to give way to the impeachment trial, which began last January 16, such that legislative sessions are conducted twice a week.
Enrile added that while senators have been focused on the Corona impeachment, the chamber’s various committees have also worked on other legislative measures.
“Our legislative work cannot take a backseat even with the ongoing impeachment proceedings. We will do our best to make sure that urgent and priority bills will be passed before the President delivers his state of the nation address in July,” he said.
The AMLA bill seeks to amend the existing law to strengthen the country’s legal framework against money laundering and make it fully compliant with the international standards. Meanwhile the Terrorist Financing Suppression Act seeks to criminalize the financing of terrorist activities.
The proposed Competition Act, on the other hand, seeks to protect the public against unfair trade practices, Enrile said.
Records from the Legislative Bills and Index Service showed that the Senate has approved 34 bills and has acted upon 283 other measures filed since July 2010.