NEDA wants courts barred from issuing TROs

The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) mulls proposing a measure to bar lower courts from intervening in large scale infrastructure projects of the national government.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said that the judiciary should not be allowed to issue temporary restraining orders (TRO) against infrastructure projects being initiated by the national government. Only the Supreme Court should be given the authority to issue such an order, the NEDA chief suggested. “Our other efforts have to do with infrastructure projects. Those projects that are of national significance will not be exposed to TROs except from the Supreme Court,” Pernia told reporters. “[By doing so], lower courts will not be able to issue TROs.” Earlier, President Duterte blamed the halt orders by the lower courts as among the reasons for government being unable to accomplish several projects, which draw the chief executive’s ire. Asked for the definition of “infrastructure projects of national significance,” Socioeconomic Planning Undersecretary Rolando G. Tungpalan said those projects have high costs and economic impact. Pernia had said the Duterte administration would be the “golden age for infrastructure,” and once the proj- ects are rolled out, work would be done 24/7.

Last April, the Duterte administration unveiled a three-year rolling infrastructure program (TRIP) amounting to R3.6 trillion from 2018 to 2020 for its so-called “the golden age of infrastructure.”

For 2018, funding of R1.13 trillion would be allocated for projects under TRIP; R1.18 trillion the following year and R1.29 trillion for 2020.

These cover infrastructure projects for transportation, water resources, sewerage and sanitation, flood management, solid waste management, maritime, social infrastructure, energy, information communications technology and others.