House to tackle Duterte priority measures when sessions resume Monday

January 19, 2020

Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez on Sunday said the House of Representatives will speed up the passage of President Rodrigo Duterte’s priority measures, including bills creating the departments of Filipinos Overseas (DFO), Water Resources (DWR) and Disaster Resilience (DDR) when session resumes on Monday.

Acting on Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano’s instructions, Romualdez, the chairman of the House Committee on Rules, said the House aims to pass the three measures before the next adjournment in March.

“ The Speaker made a clear instruction to pass these bills. No less than President Rodrigo Duterte himself called on Congress to work on these measures during his fourth State of the Nation Address last July,” said Romualdez.

Romualdez  said the House of Representatives would vote on third and final reading other vital measures approved on second reading.

“This includes House Bill No. 5673 which authorizes the Department of Health to set and approve the bed capacity and service capability of all DoH-retained hospitals in all parts of the country,” said Romualdez.

DFO will be deliberated in the plenary while the House Committee on Appropriations chaired by Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab is scheduled to approve the budget component of DDR on January 22.

The House Committees on Government Reorganization and on Disaster Management last November 20 approved the substitute bill consolidating all DDR measures.

On November 25, 2019, the DDR hurdled the House Committee on Ways and means chaired by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda.

The Salceda panel granted exemption from taxes, import duties and donor's tax on foreign donations, and goods and services donated from abroad under DDR.

Last year, House Committees on Government Reorganization and on Public Works and Highways and on Ways and Means approved DWR that would ensure reliable, safe, quality and affordable water supply for all.

Before the Christmas break, Romualdez said the House of Representatives processed a total of 900 measures or an average of 28 measures per day during 32 session days. DMS