PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has vetoed the proposed amendment to the Baguio City Charter due to its inconsistencies with current laws and jurisprudence and possible prejudice against the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA).
Malacanang, over the weekend, announced the veto of the bill titled, “An Act Amending Sections 23 and 52 and Repealing Section 55 of the Republic Act Number 11689 otherwise known as the Revised Charter of the City of Baguio.”
Republic Act Number 11689 lapsed into law on April 11, 2022.
Palace press officer Claire Castro, in a briefing yesterday, said the President, in his veto message, said he was “constrained to veto the bill as it is inconsistent with law and jurisprudence and it may endanger or prejudice the authority previously granted to the BCDA.”
Castro said this means that the President recognizes the right and authority of BCDA, a government agency under the Office of the President that manages former military bases and other properties, including parcels of land in Baguio City previously used by the United States military and now subject to conversion for civilian use.
The proposed charter amendment would remove a provision in the Baguio City Charter that required the Baguio government to transmit all ordinances to the Benguet Provincial Board for approval; the exclusion of Camp John Hay management from Baguio’s Special Land Use Committee; and repeal of Section 55 of the revised charter, which expanded the land area under the BCDA from 570 hectares to 625 hectares.
