Malacañang on Tuesday said the recent change in Senate leadership should not derail or delay the passage of key administration measures, and cautioned the Senate that slowing down legislative work would ultimately hurt the public.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said priority bills endorsed under the previous Senate leadership should continue moving forward despite the election of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as the new Senate President.
“Wala naman po dapat sigurong ipagbago dahil kung ito po ay para sa taumbayan, hindi naman dahil sa nagbago ang liderato sa Senado ay babagalan nila ang trabaho,” Castro said during a Palace briefing.
She added that any slowdown in the legislative process would not benefit the Filipino people, the President, or Congress itself.
Cayetano was elected Senate President on Monday, replacing Senator Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.
Castro noted that the administration expects Congress to continue working on the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council’s (LEDAC) priority measures, many of which are targeted for passage before the June adjournment.
In February, the LEDAC endorsed 21 priority bills during a meeting attended by then-Senate President Sotto.
Among the measures identified as urgent were the proposed Travel Tax Abolition Act, the Expanded Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children Act, the Anti-Fake News and Digital Disinformation measure, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Elections bill.
The list also includes the proposed Anti-Political Dynasty Law, Independent People’s Commission Act, and Party-List System Reform Act.
Other priority legislation covers transparency and governance reforms such as the Citizen Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability (CADENA) Act, amendments to the Bank Deposits Secrecy Law under the proposed Banking Reform for Integrity, Good Governance, Honesty, and Transparency (BRIGHT) Act, and the Right to Information Act.
Also included in the administration’s legislative agenda are amendments to the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) Act, the Masustansyang Pagkain Para sa Batang Pilipino Act, and the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE) Act.
Additional priority measures involve the Classroom-Building Acceleration Program Act, the Waste-to-Energy Bill, amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act aimed at strengthening the Energy Regulatory Commission, amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law under the proposed Rice Industry and Consumer Empowerment (RICE) Act, the creation of a Department of Water Resources, and the Estate Tax Amnesty measure.
Asked whether the proposed Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food and Transport (UPLIFT) bill would also be included among the priority measures, Castro said it is likely to gain priority status given its urgency.
She also announced that the next LEDAC meeting is scheduled on May 19, the same day discussions on the proposed UPLIFT measure are expected to continue.