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MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino shall have signed a total of five measures before he marks the end of his first year in office on June 30.
He is scheduled to sign into law today three bills – the measure extending Republic Act 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), and the bills “Allowing the Employment of Night Workers” and the “Mandatory Basic Immunization for Infants and Children.”
Also to be signed by Aquino is Joint Resolution 1 “extending the period of existence of the Joint Congressional Power Commission” that was sponsored by his allies in the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Apart from the three bills that the Chief Executive will be signing into law, two other bills have already been signed since he assumed office in June 2010 – the General Appropriations Act of 2011 (RA 10147) and the GOCC Governance Act of 2011 (RA 10149).
The measure that was approved both by the Senate and the House of Representatives postponing the Aug. 8 elections of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, however, has yet to be signed by the President. “We’re waiting for the right time to pass that. There are specific bills that are related to one issue, and we’d like to give importance to the ARMM polls postponement, that is why we will schedule a separate signing for that,” Secretary Ricky Carandang said.
Early this month, Malacañang hailed as a “milestone and first important law” the Government Owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC) Governance Act of 2011 that Aquino signed, a reform measure that ensures a level playing field for all government institutions.
“This is a milestone bill that the President personally considers as the first important law to be signed during his administration,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.
The new law provides for the rationalization of salaries and benefits of officials and employees of GOCCs and government financial institutions (GFIs). “The President has already indicated that the often bloated compensation of those at the helm of GOCCs is a major factor in the unwieldiness of such institutions,” Lacierda said in a statement.
“Worse, it contributes to a culture of political transactionalism, deeming such positions as mere political currency – to be granted based on expediency and proximity to those in power, rather than on character and competence,” he added.
“This bill effectively paves the way for wider-ranging reforms in our public corporations,” Lacierda said, noting that from now on, there will be no more excessive, unreasonable and unnecessary perks for GOCC and GFI executives, unlike in the past.
The objective of the GOCC law is to “promote financial viability and fiscal discipline in GOCCs and strengthen the role of the state in its governance and management to make these GOCCs more responsive to the needs of public interest.”
RA 10149 covers all GOCCs, GFIs and their subsidiaries, but “excludes the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, state universities and colleges, cooperatives, local water districts, economic zone authorities and research institutions.”
The law also provides for the creation of a Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG), which shall be attached to the Office of the President and will be the “central advisory, monitoring and oversight body with authority to formulate, implement and coordinate policies.”
The GCG will be composed of five members to be headed by a chairman with the rank of Cabinet secretary and two members with the rank of undersecretary who shall all be appointed by the President.
Secretaries Florencio Abad of the Department of Budget and Management and Cesar Purisima of the Department of Finance will be sitting as ex-officio members in the five-man GCG.
He is scheduled to sign into law today three bills – the measure extending Republic Act 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), and the bills “Allowing the Employment of Night Workers” and the “Mandatory Basic Immunization for Infants and Children.”
Also to be signed by Aquino is Joint Resolution 1 “extending the period of existence of the Joint Congressional Power Commission” that was sponsored by his allies in the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Apart from the three bills that the Chief Executive will be signing into law, two other bills have already been signed since he assumed office in June 2010 – the General Appropriations Act of 2011 (RA 10147) and the GOCC Governance Act of 2011 (RA 10149).
The measure that was approved both by the Senate and the House of Representatives postponing the Aug. 8 elections of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, however, has yet to be signed by the President. “We’re waiting for the right time to pass that. There are specific bills that are related to one issue, and we’d like to give importance to the ARMM polls postponement, that is why we will schedule a separate signing for that,” Secretary Ricky Carandang said.
Early this month, Malacañang hailed as a “milestone and first important law” the Government Owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC) Governance Act of 2011 that Aquino signed, a reform measure that ensures a level playing field for all government institutions.
“This is a milestone bill that the President personally considers as the first important law to be signed during his administration,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.
The new law provides for the rationalization of salaries and benefits of officials and employees of GOCCs and government financial institutions (GFIs). “The President has already indicated that the often bloated compensation of those at the helm of GOCCs is a major factor in the unwieldiness of such institutions,” Lacierda said in a statement.
“Worse, it contributes to a culture of political transactionalism, deeming such positions as mere political currency – to be granted based on expediency and proximity to those in power, rather than on character and competence,” he added.
“This bill effectively paves the way for wider-ranging reforms in our public corporations,” Lacierda said, noting that from now on, there will be no more excessive, unreasonable and unnecessary perks for GOCC and GFI executives, unlike in the past.
The objective of the GOCC law is to “promote financial viability and fiscal discipline in GOCCs and strengthen the role of the state in its governance and management to make these GOCCs more responsive to the needs of public interest.”
RA 10149 covers all GOCCs, GFIs and their subsidiaries, but “excludes the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, state universities and colleges, cooperatives, local water districts, economic zone authorities and research institutions.”
The law also provides for the creation of a Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG), which shall be attached to the Office of the President and will be the “central advisory, monitoring and oversight body with authority to formulate, implement and coordinate policies.”
The GCG will be composed of five members to be headed by a chairman with the rank of Cabinet secretary and two members with the rank of undersecretary who shall all be appointed by the President.
Secretaries Florencio Abad of the Department of Budget and Management and Cesar Purisima of the Department of Finance will be sitting as ex-officio members in the five-man GCG.
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