Noynoy signed on to holiday economics - Joker

MANILA, Philippines - The author of a law rationalizing the country’s holidays yesterday cautioned Malacañang against its plan to review what it called holiday economics policy of the Arroyo administration, saying that the President’s advisers are misinformed about the issue.

Sen. Joker Arroyo explained that moving legal holidays to the nearest Monday was not discretionary on the part of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo but was done in compliance with Republic Act No. 9492 or the law rationalizing holidays.

Arroyo, who was the law’s principal author, pointed out that the decision of the former president to move the non-working holiday for Independence Day from June 12 to June 14 was covered by the law.

“That law does not change any date of our national holidays. The law only rationalizes the celebration of non-religious national holiday to the nearest weekend in response to the wishes of 35 million laborers and employees, the millions of students and teachers, to have continuous weekend holidays rather than having middle of the week holidays,” Arroyo said in a statement.