Maharlika Fund ‘politics-free,’ says solon
Citing a similar sovereign wealth fund measure filed by former senator Bam Aquino back then, he stressed that the bill was not even a new idea, nor was it the brainchild of his father
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Citing a similar sovereign wealth fund measure filed by former senator Bam Aquino back then, he stressed that the bill was not even a new idea, nor was it the brainchild of his father
The controversial Maharlika Investment Fund bill — which hurdled a House panel days after it was filed — would be "politically free" and the funds invested there will be "used properly," if enacted, according to Ilocos Norte Representative Sandro Marcos.
Marcos made the remark at the sidelines of the second and final congressional bicameral conference committee meeting on the proposed 2023 P5.268 trillion national budget.
The lawmaker — one of the bill's authors — defended the House's decision to push for the passage of House Bill 6398, which calls for creating a P275 billion sovereign wealth fund for the Philippines, in the face of public condemnation and reservations from other lawmakers, including his aunt, Senator Imee Marcos.
"I think part of the reason was that, of course, it'd been politicized, but the whole point of this exercise is that this corporation will be free from politics. That's why it needs to be run by technocrats; they have no interest in politics," Marcos said.
Citing a similar sovereign wealth fund measure filed by former senator Bam Aquino back then, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s son stressed that the bill was not even a new idea, nor was it the brainchild of his father.
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"So yes, it became apparent that the President was in support of creating a sovereign wealth fund but the idea did not come from him per se. Because this is something that has been in the works or something that's been pushed by not even this administration but past administrations," Marcos said.
The bill, whose authors include Speaker Martin Romualdez, proposes a P250 billion initial investment from the Government Service Insurance System, Social Security System, Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines, plus a P25 billion national government contribution.
The funds will then be invested in high-yielding outlets. However, the calls to block the bill's passage were rooted in a lack of representation from GSIS and SSS members in the fund's management.
Meantime, Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman believes that the proposed Maharlika Wealth Fund will help the Marcos administration achieve its "Agenda for Prosperity."
The DBM said the country's economic team tackled the "benefits" of institutionalizing MWF during the 183rd Development Budget Coordination Committee meeting on Monday and the DBM chief — along with Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Socioeconomic Planning Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon, Bangko Sentral Monetary Board Member Bruce Tolentino, and Government Service Insurance System President and General Manager Jose Arnulfo "Wick" Veloso — led the meeting.
During the meeting, the DBM said Diokno expressed the belief that the country "should have had the Sovereign Wealth Fund a long time ago to set aside funds for the future generations."
The Budget Department also disclosed that Veloso believes that a number of key industries in the country can move forward upon investment in high capital expenditures through the MWF which will, in turn, improve employment, taxation and economic activities.
In other developments, Senator Juan Edgardo Angara said that the proposed creation of the Maharlika Investment Fund may encounter some obstacles primarily due to its source of funding which will be drawn from government financial institutions.
Angara, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance, called the MIF a "high-risk high reward endeavor" that needs to have safeguards and limitations on investment into riskier endeavors.
"Accessing contributions of pension funds would be a ticklish issue and may encounter some obstacles," said Angara.
He stressed that the government could instead use other investible funds and dormant government assets such as those with high potential upsides like real properties abroad.
Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, on the other hand, stressed that proper management must be ensured should the legislators decide to pass the proposed measure seeking the establishment of the Maharlika Investment fund
"I'm sure it would still go through a long debate and processes, but what's important here is that we can assure that whoever will manage — it should be a good manager — that person will make sure there will be no wasted funds," Go said.
The senator added that the government should make sure that the proposed MIF will not be politicized, and will be used accordingly as well as judiciously utilized without favoring anyone.
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