Makabayan bloc opens 18th Congress with 67 bills, resos

The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives (HOR) got off to its usual running start and filed 67 bills and resolutions on the opening day of the 18th Congress Monday.

While their colleagues, including other party list representatives, are busy with infighting for the speakership of the HOR, the Leftist lawmakers submitted both new and their old legislative measures and made sure they are among the first to file them.

Makabayan legislative staffmembers were among the first to line up at the HORS’s Bills and Index Service office very early yesterday morning to increase their chance of an early first reading of their measures and referral by the Speaker to their appropriate committees.

Bayan Muna filed 30 bills and resolutions ranging from agrarian refom, human rights, social pension, lowering of prices of basic commodities, wage increases, social services to political reforms.

ACT Teachers Party filed 17 bills and resolutions ranging from salary increases, social services, government services reforms to freedom of information.

Kabataan Party for its part filed 10 bills, mostly on youth and student rights.

Gabriela Women’s Party for its part filed 10 bills and resolutions that the group said seek to uplift women from economic woes and abuse.

Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas said their party prioritizes the repeal of the Rice Tariffication Law due to its disastrous impact on farmers and poor households, as well as measures that seek to end violence against women and children.

“Rice tariffication law sets forth the sharp drop in the farmgate prices of palay which threatens the livelihood of our farmers, as well as the phaseout of the cheaper NFA rice which poor Filipino families rely on. That’s why we want to immediately repeal the law to provide relief to millions of Filipino families,” she said.

“As an alternative, we have filed the Rice Industry Development Act previously filed by Anakpawis Partylist to ensure sufficient support for Filipino farmers and to mandate the identification of rice zones across the country to boost local rice production,” she added.

ACT Teachers Party Rep. France Castro for her part revealed that their 17 bills are bannered by their teachers salary increase bill she said is long overdue.

“We strongly urge the incoming House Leadership to immediately hear and pass the bill increasing the salaries of teachers and other government employees. Similarly, we call on our fellow legislators in both houses of Congress to champion this cause,” Castro said.

This morning, Bayan Muna filed its 31st measure, a resolution calling for an investigation on the violations of labor rights by detergent manufacturer Peerless Products Manufacturing Corporation, following the series of bloody attacks company guards inflicted on its striking workers.

List of bills

Bayan Muna:

1. Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill
2. Human Rights Defenders Bill
3. 2nd Tranche of SSS pension increase
4. Increasing Social Pension
5. Genuine Partylist Group and Nominee Act
6. Repeal TRAIN Law
7. Renationalization of Petron
8. Investigation of the Recto Bank Incident
9. Unbundling of Oil Prices
10. ₱750 National Minimum Wage
11. ₱16,000 Minimum Wage for Government Employees
12. Anti-Privatization of Health Services
13. Free Hemodialysis
14. Anti-Political Dynasty
15. Investigation on Water Privatization
16. Investigation on the Killings in Bicol
17. Investigation on Electoral-Related Harassments
18. Security of Tenure and Substitute Civil Service Eligibility
19. No VAT in Electricity
20. No Vat in Systems Loss
21. People’s Mining Bill
22. Genuine Small Coco Farmer’s Fund
23. Investigation on impacts of agribusiness to agrarian reform beneficiaries
24. No VAT in Water
25. Manila Bay as Reclamation-Free Zone
26. No Mining Zones
27. SOGIE (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression) Bill
28. Investigation on HRVs related to Memo 32 
29. Investigation on Kaliwa Dam Project
30. Moratorium on Coal-Fired Power Plants

ACT Teachers Party-List:

1. HB 219 – salary increase for public school teachers and other government employees
2. HB 220 – The Teacher Protection Act of 2019
3. HB 221 – lowering the optional retirement age of government employees
4. HB 222 – The Teaching Supplies Allowance Act of 2019
5. HB 223 – mandatori na mga yunit ng Filipino at Panitikan sa kolehiyo
6. HB 224 – Act Mandating Free Health Services for the People
7. HB 225 – exempting from taxation all amounts granted to persons rendering election service for national and local elections
8. HB 226 – The Freedom of Information Act
9. HB 227 – The Public School Class Size Law
10. HB 228 – The Revised GSIS Act of 2019
11. HB 508 – shorter probationary period of teaching and non-teaching personnel in private schools
12. HB 509 – guidance counselors in public schools
13. HB 510 – repealing the anti-professional CPD Act of 2016
14. HB 511 – The COMELEC Reorganization Act
15. HB 512 – expanded paternity leave
16. HB 513 – National Education Support Personnel Day
17. HR 20 – inquiry in aid of legislation into the status of implementation of the K to 12 Program

Kabataan Party:

1. Students Rights
2. Campus Press Freedom
3. University Services
4. Human Rights Education
5. Anti-No Permit No Exam
6. FQS Day and FQS@50
7. National Youth Day
8. Mandatory Bonifacio Subject
9. National Filipino Youth Museum
10. Philippine Cinema Appreciation

Gabriela Women’s Party:

1. Repeal of the Rice Tariffication Law
2. Rice Industry Development
3. Magna Carta for Daycare Workers
4. Amendments to the Solo Parents Welfare Act
5. Repeal of VAT on oil and other products
6. Resolution seeking to review the concession agreement of the MWSS
7. Amendments to the Anti-Rape Law 
8. Electronic Violence Against Women and Children (EVAWC) 
9. Repeal of the Human Security Act (HSA)
10. Divorce bill

The progressive parties said the 67 bills are just their initial submissions. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)