Palace blames Senate for bill delays

Palace blames Senate for bill delays | Daily Tribune

Malacañang on Tuesday said the Senate should bear responsibility for its failure to pass key proposed measures, blaming the senators who staged walkouts and boycotts amid a leadership struggle months ago.

Over the weekend, Senator Imee Marcos expressed disappointment over the Senate’s legislative output, noting that only two of the 52 priority measures filed in the chamber had been approved. She said the Senate deserved a failing grade for its performance.

Marcos blamed the Senate’s poor performance on its unprecedented series of leadership changes, saying four leadership revamps in less than a year disrupted the chamber’s work, aside from the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

“We heard Senator Imee Marcos say that the low legislative output was due to the change in the Senate leadership. But first, who initiated that leadership change? It was after that that the Senate experienced infighting, disorder, and three consecutive days when some senators did not attend the session,” Palace Press Officer and Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said during a briefing.

A power struggle unfolded in the Senate in June, with Senator Sherwin Gatchalian wresting the Senate presidency from Senator Alan Peter Cayetano.

Castro said the “inconvenient truth” should serve as a reminder to lawmakers not to put personal interests ahead of the public welfare.

“I hope this serves as a lesson to all public servants that leadership cannot be exercised in this manner. The interest of the nation must always come first — not personal interests. The goal should not simply be to stay in power, but to work for the good of every Filipino,” Castro said.

Palace readies priority bills

Meanwhile, on the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Executive Secretary Ralph Recto convened the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) Ad Hoc Team on Monday to finalize the administration’s priority legislative agenda for the 20th Congress.

According to Recto, the proposed measures are anchored on the President’s vision for a more responsive, transparent and inclusive government.

He said the proposed measures aim to accelerate economic growth, provide tax relief for workers and businesses, reduce electricity costs, strengthen food and energy security, expand social protection, intensify the fight against corruption, and improve public service delivery through key institutional and political reforms.

The legislative priorities align with the policy directions President Marcos outlined in his recent State of the Nation Address, including proposals to expand income tax exemptions, provide tax relief to small businesses, grant a tax amnesty, lower electricity costs by removing system loss charges, and strengthen public services.

The meeting served as a preparatory session for the upcoming full LEDAC meeting, where the Executive, the Senate, and the House of Representatives are expected to discuss and adopt a common legislative agenda to fast-track the passage of priority measures to benefit the Filipino people.