SB vows to push for more measures to lure investors

MANILA, Philippines - Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has vowed to push for more measures in the incoming 16th Congress aimed at promoting fair competition in business and attracting investors.

“Meaningful socio-economic development means, among others, promoting and enhancing economic efficiency and full competition in trade, industry and all related activities,” Belmonte said. “We must encourage more direct investments.”

He said Congress strongly supports measures like anti-trust bills.

Due to lack of time, the 15th Congress was not able to approve House Bill 4835 or the proposed Philippine Fair Competition Act, originally set to be passed on second reading at the House of Representatives last February.

The Senate and the House, currently on a campaign break, are scheduled to resume session in June before adjourning sine die in the same month.

“We are aware of the very limited time left for the 15th Congress, but we also can’t just pass any measure half-baked. Even if we are able to pass it before the June sine die, the measure will still have to pass Senate scrutiny as well,” the Speaker said.

He said he is confident that the incoming 16th Congress would give due consideration to the measure as well as to other vital bills, already in their advanced stages of approval in the 15th Congress.

“The reform process that we have started working on together must continue. We have planted the seeds of change in this Congress for the next one to develop and harvest, so to speak,” Belmonte said.

The passage of the bill, he said, is essential to leveling the playing field among firms and effectively reducing transaction costs and risks for businesses.

Another major objective of the bill is to prevent the concentration of economic power to a few individuals who can control production and manipulate prices.

The Speaker is also pushing for the enactment of amendments to the Build-Operate-Transfer Law and the House-approved National Land Use Policy Act now in the Senate.

He said he would also continue to push for easing economic restrictions in the Constitution.