Editorial

What Lawmakers Want 

From Aquino’s SONA

Below are the things members of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives wanted to hear in the President’s (Benigno Aquino III) State of the Nation Address last July 24, as Rio Rose Ribaya reported.

1. Concrete action plans to ensure inclusive economic growth – majority of congressmen and senators wants President Aquino to talk about his plan on how to ensure inclusive economic growth; 

2.    Detailed jobs creation program – veteran lawmaker and Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara expected President Aquino to talk about the hardest challenge for his administration this time: jobs creation; 

3.    Incentives for investors – Angara also hoped President Aquino to finally decide whether his administration could give business incentives to encourage people to put up more businesses in the country;

4.    New approaches on poverty alleviation – Senator Grace Poe wanted to hear President Aquino talk about the government’s other poverty-alleviation program;

5.    Increased budgetary support for social services – Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon hoped President Aquino delivers his commitment to increase the budget for health and education sectors;

6.    Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Program – lawmakers suggested to simply cut off the monthly subsidies it has been handing out to poor families; 

7.    Faster infrastructure developments – Angara thought President Aquino should disclose his plan on how to roll out the big-ticket infrastructure projects seen to sustain economic developments in the Philippines;

8.    Concrete action plans that would ensure inclusive economic growth – majority of congressmen and senators wanted President Aquino to talk about his plan on how to ensure inclusive economic growth;

9.    Certify Freedom of Information bill as urgent – Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat hoped Pres. Aquino finally makes a clear stand about the FoI bill;

10.    Other priority measures for the environment – Baguilat also believes President Aquino ensures the passage of a genuine Alternative Mining Bill. The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines complained that provisions in the proposed People’s Mineral Resources Act undermines “responsible mining” in the country; and

11.     Charter Change – some legislators wanted categorical statement from President Aquino about the moves to amend the 1987 Constitution. Navotas Rep. Tobias “Toby” Tiangco, thinks the measure would affect the passage of other important bills in the Senate.
The Botcha Law

Before his term of office ended, former Senator Manuel Villar welcomed the approval into laws of two bills which he authored.

One law is RA 10557 or the Philippine Design Competitiveness Act. In this law, Senator Teofisto Guingona III co-authored with Villar.

According to Villar, the said law will “uplift the state of our Philippine design industry as it will establish a designed economy where we may generate jobs for the people”.

The law will “put in place the enabling environment that will allow the various sectors of the design industry to increase productivity, enhance visibility in the global market, boost competitiveness and improve the level of innovation of our creative people”, Villar pointed out.

Villar noted that despite of the abundance of creative talents in the country, the Philippines is trailing behind Asian neighbors. Home grown talents are being pirated by other countries such as China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia”.

Villar cited the case of a Cebu based furniture maker Kenneth Cobonque whose creations are featured in foreign films. There are also Bea Valdes, a successful jewelry artisan, and bag designers Maristela Ocampo and Amina Aranaz.

The Botcha law or RA 10536 amended the Meat Inspection Code of the Philippines. This law, according to Villar imposes upon a person guilty of violating this law of from six (6) years to 12 years imprisonment and a fine of P100 thousand to P1 million.

“Despite aggressive market raids conducted by the National Meat Inspection Service, local officials and the police, those arrested were able to elude criminal liability because the penalties were weak”, Villar noted.

Can the present penalties curb or prevent botcha from being sold in the markets? Some, if not all, meat traders are creative that they can pass off botcha as freshly slaughtered meat.

What is botcha? The word botcha as it appears in the dictionary means the South African statesman, Louis Botcha. He was the 1st Prime Minister (1910-1919). 

Botcha in this article means a pig which died either caused by a disease or other unknown causes before it reaches the slaughter house It is unfit for human consumption as it will cause people to get sick after eating it. /MP