Senate passes Bayanihan 2
The Senate passed on third and final reading yesterday the proposed Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, which allocates P140 billion for the continued funding of the government’s programs to assist sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dubbed Bayanihan 2, the measure extended the validity of the government’s COVID-19 programs and interventions under Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which lapsed on June 5 being an emergency legislation that granted President Duterte authority to realign funds to address the crisis.
“With Bayanihan 2, the government will be assured of sufficient funding for the ramped up COVID-19 testing and contact tracing. It will also ensure that our health workers who contract or succumb to the disease will continuously receive financial support,” Sen. Sonny Angara, chairman of the finance committee and sponsor of the measure, said.
“The measure will also allow the government to continue providing assistance to businesses and workers affected by the pandemic, including overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were either repatriated or whose deployments were suspended,” Angara added.
Duterte on Monday asked Congress to pass Bayanihan 2 to supplement funds for recovery and response against the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Senators originally proposed a funding of over P600 billion but the Department of Finance stressed the government only has P140 billion to spare until the end of the year, so other financial aid programs in the bill were removed.
The chamber passed the bill on second reading before Congress adjourned on June 5.
The measure was approved by 22 senators with Sen. Francis Pangilinan being the lone dissenter, saying he could not vote yes if Health Secretary Francisco Duque III was still helming the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), which failed in effectively implementing the first Bayanihan Law amid corruption allegations.
Pangilinan noted that under Bayanihan 2, 13 or half of the 26 interventions to be funded by the measure would be handled by the Department of Health (DOH).
Under the bill, a total of P10 billion will be appropriated for the procurement of polymerase chain reaction testing and extraction kits and corresponding supplies, including enhancement of DOH capacities in programs involving elimination and control of other diseases.
Some P15 billion will go to the cash-for-work program for displaced workers.
A total of P50 billion will go to government financial institutions Landbank of the Philippines (P30 billion), Development Bank of the Philippines (P15 billion) and the Philippine Guarantee Corp. (P5 billion) as capital infusion for the grant of low-interest loans to micro, small and medium enterprises.
For the agriculture sector, P17 billion will go to the Plant, Plant, Plant program, including cash subsidies and interest-free loans under the Agricultural Credit Policy Council.
To help the affected members of the transport sector, a total of P17 billion will go to the Department of Transportation for the provision of interest rate subsidies and temporary livelihood for displaced workers.
The tourism industry, which was among the hardest hit by the pandemic, will get P10 billion through the Department of Tourism for assistance to businesses.
For education, there will be assistance for state universities and colleges for the development of campuses to implement the flexible learning system.
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority will also get additional funding for scholarship programs and retraining and upskilling of displaced workers, including returning OFWs.
Bayanihan 2 will also pave the way for the continuation of programs under Bayanihan 1 such as the provision of emergency subsidies for areas placed under enhanced community quarantine, procurement of essential equipment such as medical supplies and equipment to be used for COVID-19, goods and services for social amelioration measures, construction of temporary medical facilities and other critical services for distribution centers and temporary medical facilities.
House to Senate: Pass key bills
House leaders yesterday vowed support for the legislative agenda presented by President Duterte during his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.
They challenged their counterparts in the Senate to pass priority measures pushed by the Duterte administration.
Deputy Speaker LRay Villafuerte and Majority Leader Martin Romualdez both said the role of Congress is crucial for the government to carry out its duties to effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Congress needs to arm the President anew with special powers for his government to best deal with the virus that apparently has no intention of going away anytime soon,” Villafuerte said.
“We are ready to take on the challenge. Despite the uncertain times brought by the global pandemic, we will ensure that the administration’s priority bills will be realized with efficiency for the welfare of the Filipinos,” Romualdez said.
They said the House has passed some of the key measures pushed by the President before the first regular session of the 18th Congress adjourned sine die.
Among these are the Accelerated Recovery and Investments Stimulus for the Economy Act and COVID-19 Unemployment Reduction Economic Stimulus Act and the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises or the previous proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act. These measures have been passed by the House on final reading but remain pending in the Senate.
Villafuerte also appealed to the Senate to prioritize its counterpart measures to the proposed Better Normal Act prescribing a “whole-ofsociety” approach to strict mandatory safety and physical distancing protocols.
Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano has assured the public that the House would do its part in passing key measures.