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WITH the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2 now enacted, the leadership of the House of Representatives was urged to create an oversight committee to ensure that the 165 billion pesos allocated by Congress are “used appropriately, prudently and fast. “
Vice President Luis Raymund Villafuerte and Welcome Abante minority leader made the call welcoming the signing of President Duterte del Bayanihan 2 on Friday night.
Villafuerte, lead author of the bill, expressed his hope that Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado will fulfill the commitment to release P165 billion in economic stimulus funds as soon as Bayanihan 2 is enacted.
Meanwhile, despite criticism that Bayanihan 2 is “too little, too late,” senators touted its potential for income and socioeconomic benefits.
The law, for example, will raise 17.5 billion pesos in additional revenue from Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) and accelerate the construction of telecommunications towers in the country, according to Senate Minority Leader Franklin M. Drilon. .
In an interview over the weekend with DWIZ, Drilon, who proposed the two key provisions of the law, expressed hope that Bayanihan 2 can still provide the government and the people with some protection during the pandemic, despite criticism, mainly from the independent IBON database. that arrives very little, very late.
The measure will also support the government’s response to the Covid-19 health crisis, ensuring that vital measures – health interventions and economic assistance to sectors affected by Covid – are not interrupted, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Juan Edgardo Angara, who sponsored Bayanihan 2 on camera, assured. in a separate interview.
The signing of Bayanihan 2, Angara said, “will ensure that the government’s response” to the country’s health crisis continues uninterrupted. This will provide much-needed support to our healthcare sector, which is on the front lines of this battle against Covid-19. It will help sectors that have fallen to their knees due to the lack of economic activity ”.
The assistance will also go to sectors most affected by community quarantines such as tourism and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MIPYMES), which experienced zero economic activity for more than four months, Angara added. “They will have access to low-interest loans to help them continue with their operations and financial assistance for workers who lost their jobs.”
Villafuerte made a similar observation. He said the signing of Bayanihan 2 would allow Malacañang to expand its Covid-19 response while extending immediate financial assistance to distressed businesses, especially MSMEs, and reverse the alarming trend of business closings and mass worker layoffs.
For his part, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian cited a provision in Bayanihan 2 that guarantees a 30-day grace period for payment of utility bills that cover those within the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) or Community Quarantine period. Modified Enhanced (MECQ). For now, Iligan City, Bacolod City and Lanao del Sur remain under MECQ until September 30.
Likewise, the payment of interest, penalties and other charges in the covered period would be exempted.
Income POGO P17.5-B
Minority leader Drilon said Bayanihan 2 redefined POGO taxes and tightened regulations in an attempt to raise funds to increase the government’s increasingly scarce resources.
“The Bayanihan 2 will more than double POGO’s tax collection, from an estimated P7 billion of revenue in 2019 to about P17.5 billion this year due to the reforms we have introduced into the measure,” Drilon said in an interview with DWIZ, citing estimates from the Department of Finance.
Drilon noted that the government intended to leverage the overseas gaming industry to close budget gaps in the P165 billion stimulus fund. The Bayanihan 2 can only finance up to P140 billion. Therefore, the measure sets aside P25 billion as a reserve allocation that can be funded when there is additional revenue or unexpected collections, Drilon explained.
“All proceeds from POGO will be used to fund the various types of assistance established in Bayanihan 2 for all sectors affected by the pandemic,” he added.
Bayanihan 2 also tightened regulations on POGO to fix loopholes in the current system, Drilon said.
Telecommunication towers obstacle
The Bayanihan 2 also paves the way for faster cell phone tower construction in the country, which is often cited as having the most expensive, but slowest, Internet connection in Asia, Drilon said.
A provision that Drilon proposed temporarily suspends most permits for the installation and operation of cell phone towers in the country within the next three years.
There are about 29 to 35 documentary requirements and permits before a single tower can be built in a subdivision, barangay or city, Drilon noted, adding that telcos often mention the difficulty of obtaining authorizations and permits to build sites. cell phones and towers, which can take years to complete.
Drilon also authored a provision against the issuance of any temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction against the construction of telecommunications infrastructure, including cell sites and cell towers, by the courts except the Supreme Court.
Initial stimulus
Meanwhile, Villafuerte said that Bayanihan 2’s P165.5 billion budget “would be just an initial stimulus package, considering the immense resources needed to signify a strong and early recovery for sectors reeling from unleashed global economic consequences. for the coronavirus pandemic. “
He expressed his hope that Malacañang can raise more resources in the coming months “to finance more stimulus packages necessary for an early and strong economic recovery.”
The Chamber previously approved proposals on the Law of Economic Stimulus for the Reduction of Unemployment Covid-19 of P1.5 trillion (CURES) and the Law of Stimulus of Accelerated Recovery and Investments of P1.3 trillion for the Economy (ARISE) , which require aggressive spending to boost the economy and alleviate the impact of the pandemic in its most affected sectors.
For his part, Abante said that the country “literally cannot afford to misuse these funds.”
Abante said: “Due to Covid-19, our revenue collection decreased, and that is why the tax collection goal for 2020 was lowered to P1.74 trillion from the goal of P2.26 trillion that the BIR set in March. . Funds are scarce and we must make the most of what we have.
“Second, we cannot allow these funds to collect dust due to slow or delayed implementation,” Solon said.
“Third, we cannot lose funds for our kababayan corruption, “added Abante.
