LEDAC ropes in Judiciary for meetings

THE LEGISLATIVE-EXECUTIVE Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) met for the first time in over five years on Monday, setting the stage for close consultation and coordination between the two branches of government on reform priorities, as well as for inclusion of the Judiciary.

The 20-member advisory body was formed under Republic Act No. 7640 during the administration of former president Fidel V. Ramos, who held its first meeting on May 19, 1993, a year into his term. The last LEDAC meeting before Monday was held on August 6, 2011 under the administration of former president Benigno S.C. Aquino III.

Aside from President Rodrigo R. Duterte, who presided over the said meeting, also present from the Executive branch were Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia, Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana, Peace Adviser Jesus G. Dureza, Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar, and Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade.

Lawmakers who attended the LEDAC meeting were Senate President Aquilino L. Pimentel III and senators Franklin M. Drilon, Vicente C. Sotto III, and Ralph G. Recto, as well as House Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez, Majority Leader Rodolfo C. Fariñas, Minority Leader Danilo E. Suarez and Dakila Carlo E. Cua, chairman of the Ways and Means committee at the House of Representatives.

In a press briefing at Malacañang on Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto C. Abella said there were about 39 priority bills proposed by Congress and 28 measures by the Executive during the said meeting, adding that LEDAC agreed to meet once every quarter while its committees will convene once a month.

“This time it’s going to be more regular. If all goes well they’ll be meeting at least four times this year aside from the committee meetings,” Mr. Abella said.

Senate President Pimentel III said in a text message yesterday that regular LEDAC meetings will enable both branches of government to “better coordinate” for faster action on legislated reforms.

JUDICIARY INVITED

Mr. Pimentel also told reporters that “there was a proposal that, once in a while, we also convene a so-called LEJDAC, that’s the judiciary… so that I am sure ang lalabas dun (what will be discussed there) would be… judiciary or justice matters, which is very important” — in apparent reference to investors’ concern of generally slow court action and even interference in legitimate business contracts.

Mr. Pernia, who heads the National Economic and Development Authority ( NEDA) as director-general, told reporters separately: “We want to invite the judiciary into this council.”

“It will be a conversation among the three branches of government and we already mailed our invitation to Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes A. Sereno,” he said.

“They’re going to meet every quarter, but there will be an executive committee that will meet every month. So that is how serious we are in trying to coordinate with the different branches of government for more effective governance.”

Mr. Drilon said in a separate interview yesterday that “[ b]oth houses of Congress have submitted [a] common list [of bills] to the executive and the executive will look at this, and they will have their own list.”

Leaders of both chambers drew up in a meeting on Jan. 25 a joint list of priority bills that include estate tax reform; revision of the Corporation Code; providing free Internet access in public places; granting emergency powers to the Executive to address the traffic and congestion crisis; the proposed Coconut Farmers Industry Development Act that will finally distribute coconut levy funds to beneficiaries; an act ending the practice of hiring contractuals even for core functions; a proposed law increasing across-the-board pensions of Social Security System beneficiaries; establishment of a Housing department; as well as proposed laws for free irrigation services, higher education, free health insurance coverage for all, and to cut red tape and further ease doing business.

The government’s Investor Relations Office last month bared the Executive’s own list that consists of: a shift to a federal system of government; a tax reform program that includes cuts in personal and corporate income tax rates; easing bank secrecy; emergency powers to solve traffic and other transport problems; a Bangsamoro Basic Law sans unconstitutional provisions; establishment of a People’s Broadcasting Corp. to replace PTV-4, with separate television channels for Muslims and Lumad audience; a proposed whistleblower protection act; formation of a single department to handle overseas Filipino concerns; universal health insurance through the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.; strengthening the anti-money laundering law, especially by including tax evasion, among others; extending the validity of passports; strengthening the public- private partnership scheme; exempting Bureau of Internal Revenue and Bureau of Customs personnel from state salary standardization; a Freedom of Information law covering the entire government and not just the Executive; military and uniformed personnel compensation and pension reform; as well as proposed laws to reform the budget process and to streamline the government.

Asked for a timetable for legislative action on these reforms, Mr. Pimentel said only: “Syempre, as soon as possible,” adding that the Senate’s strategy is to have “two tracks: while we pass priority measures, we also work on the easy or non-controversial measures, although not on the list.”

NEDA’s Mr. Pernia said in a separate press conference at New World Makati Hotel that “[m]any things were agreed in terms of priorities.”

“One is the comprehensive tax reform program: I think that was the way of softening the opposition of those in Congress and in Senate,” he explained, referring to moves in both the House of Representatives and the Senate to temper any increase in tax rate while making sure vulnerable sectors are spared.

The Department of Finance (DoF) had submitted to Congress in September last year the first of four to five packages of tax reform — consisting of a cut in income tax rates that will be matched by reduced value added tax exemptions, as well as increases in excise taxes on automobiles and on petroleum products — but its configuration has since changed.

The entire tax reform program aims to make the poor pay less and the rich pay more, while yielding net additional revenues to support the government’s infrastructure build and priority socioeconomic reforms.

The first package, for instance, is projected to forego P139.6 billion and collect P302.1 billion, yielding P162.5 million in net additional revenues.

“Then we also talked about reforming the procurement law so that we can speed up the construction of projects,” Mr. Pernia added.

As for the P74-billion coconut levy funds — levied from small farmers during the regime of the late strongman Ferdinand E. Marcos but which were later seized from his cronies — Mr. Pernia said the government wants to use them during President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s term “in terms of improving agriculture, especially the coconut sector and the farmers who really should be benefitting from them…”