GOCC charters up for review

MANILA, Philippines — The charters of more than 100 government-owned or controlled corporations (GOCCs) will be reviewed as the administration moves to rightsize the bureaucracy and ensure economic viability.

In a statement, the Governance Commission on GOCCs (GCG) said it would conduct a comprehensive review of the mandates and performance of state corporations under its jurisdiction.

At present, there are 118 GOCCs with a combined asset of P10 trillion under the jurisdiction of the GCG.

GCG chairperson Alex Quiroz said the review aims to assess economic viability, responsiveness to the needs of the public, and consistency with national development policies and programs.

“In so far as the GOCCs are concerned, President Marcos wants to have rightsizing and transparency to take care of its more than P10 trillion assets and to avoid the dissipation of public funds,” Quiroz said.

As a priority measure of the Marcos administration, the rightsizing plan is a reform mechanism aimed at enhancing the government’s institutional capacity to enable it to implement transformational reform initiatives and improve public service delivery.

It will focus on the performance of the vital functions of agencies and simplify systems and processes through various stem management and productivity enhancement.

The GCG review process will involve consultations with GOCCs and concerned stakeholders and an assessment of their charters, scorecards and contributions to national development.

The results of the review including recommendations will be submitted to Congress for consideration in crafting, revising or modifying the charters of GOCCs.

These may include recommendations on whether certain government corporations will be abolished, merged or retained.

As some of the charters of the GOCCs are about to expire, Quiroz said the GCG would also make recommendations on whether or not to extend their charters.

As the central advisory, oversight and monitoring body for GOCCs, the GCG is mandated to evaluate the performance and determine the relevance of any state corporation.