THE House of Representatives is set to approve on third and final reading two more of President Marcos Jr.’s priority bills before adjourning sine die this week, Speaker Martin Romualdez said yesterday.
The two measures set to be passed on final reading are the proposed Philippine Salt Industry Development Act and the Bureau of Immigration Modernization Act.
This will bring to 33 the total number of Palace-backed priority measures approved by the House. There are 42 bills in the list approved by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
“We are doing our part in supporting the President’s socio-economic development agenda by passing these urgent proposed pieces of legislation that would sustain our economic growth and create more job and income opportunities for our people,” Romualdez said.
“We are inching toward accomplishing our goal of approving all of these priorities measures, thanks to the hard and tireless work of our colleagues,” he also said.
Last week, the Speaker presented a list of the House’s accomplishment amid the alleged plot of Deputy Speaker Gloria Arroyo, the chairman emeritus of the Lakas-CMD, to oust him. Romualdez is the president of the Lakas-CMD.
Arroyo, who was demoted to the post of regular deputy speaker from senior deputy speaker, has denied plotting a coup against Romualdez, saying that some of her actions “may have been misconstrued.”
There are three remaining LEDAC priority bills that are set for second-reading approval before adjourning sine die: the proposed enabling law of the natural gas industry, the National Employment Action plan, and the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System bill.
The Speaker said the draft Philippine Salt Industry Development Act seeks to revive the dying salt industry in the country, which imports a large part of the commodity.
“We have to help the industry and the thousands of Filipinos and their families who depend on it for their livelihood. Our country is surrounded by seas. We can produce a lot of salt for our consumption and even for export,” he said.
He said the government has to assist salt farmers with training, technology and funding to increase their produce, and in marketing it.
Among the provisions of the bill are the creation of the Philippine Salt Industry Development Council and the formulation of a Philippine salt industry roadmap.
It designates the Department of Agriculture, through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), as the lead agency in reviving and developing the salt industry and transfers jurisdiction over salt farms and fishponds from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to the DA-BFAR.
On the other hand, the Bureau of Immigration Modernization Act seeks to update the 83-year-old immigration law, Commonwealth Act No. 613, otherwise known as the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940.
It seeks to refresh the country’s immigration law to cover recent challenges in immigration and migration and cross-border crimes, including smuggling, illegal recruitment and human trafficking and also update the compensation of immigration personnel.
