Marcos to sign 3 key measures into law

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is set to sign into law on Monday three key measures that are meant to uplift the welfare and benefits of Filipino seafarers and the elderly, as well as promote Philippine-made products.

The Presidential Legislative Liaison Office said these are the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, Tatak Pinoy Act and An Act Granting Benefits to Filipino Octogenarians and Nonagenarians.

The least problematic of the three is the law on cash gifts to the elderly, to be numbered as Republic Act No. 11983, which grants P10,000 for Filipinos when they turn 80, 85, 90 and 95
years old. It also creates an Elderly Data Management System.

The measure will expand the coverage of RA 10868, or the Centenarians Act, which provides a cash gift of P100,000 for Filipinos who reach the age of 100 years old.

The Tatak Pinoy Act, to be numbered RA 11981, has been in the legislative pipeline for years and was meant to boost the sales of Filipino-made products and services.

RA 11981 was meant to be a “game changer” for local products, particularly farm produce, but the law did not allocate funds for the incipient Tatak Pinoy Council that it created nor offer any incentive for buyers of local products.

The still-unfunded Tatak Pinoy Council, will be led by the National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Trade and Industry and Department of Agriculture with unspecified members.

The council is meant to work with the private sector in promoting local products and crafting policies and programs that would diversify local products and services.

Seafarers’ magna carta The Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, to be numbered RA 11982, has been in the legislative mill for more than 10 years and was hastened when the European Maritime Safety Agency flagged the country for not aligning maritime safety and education with international standards.

READ: But first, protect seafarers

Nonetheless, RA 11982 was passed without the controversial escrow provision that would have delayed the “final and executory” nature of decisions issued by National Labor Relations Commission and National Conciliation and Mediation Board in labor disputes.

The approved measure also tried to resolve frequent disputes between shipping companies and seafarers seeking disability claims through the execution of bonds, which will only be required for disputed portions of an award.