Vetoed

The outgoing 15th Congress convenes today their ultimate sessions, though only briefly. But before bowing out of existence, lawmakers of both chambers will wind down their respective unfinished order of business.

As the legislators conduct their final session today, they have conceded that a number of pet bills they pushed in Congress for three years won’t see the light of day. This realization comes after President Benigno “Noy” Aquino III decided to exercise his veto powers on a number of these local and national bills.

There were some 65 out of 200 bills produced by the 15th Congress since July 2010 that were reportedly shot down by presidential veto. Other than bruised egos of lawmakers and possible damage to their re-election bids, vetoed bills entail so much time, effort and scarce funds of government going down the drain.

The Chief Executive has vetoed at least four bills of national importance while the bulk were of local applications. The four national bills vetoed by P-Noy were the Magna Carta for the Poor; the bill removing the height limits for policemen, firemen and jail guards; the Centenarian Act, and the Rights of Internally Displaced Persons Act.

Some of the authors of the bills vowed to re-file them in the 16th Congress. Well, that’s all the senators and congressmen will be able to do because they will merely open and later close their sessions when they convene for the last time today.

Yes, the authors can re-file the vetoed bills. That’s the first step they must do because these bills must again go through the entire legislative process.

Moreover, there is no history yet of Congress having been able to override a presidential veto. Under our 1987 Constitution, two-thirds vote of Congress can override a presidential veto.  

Talking about his vetoed bills, P-Noy pointed to certain “killer” provisions contained in these proposed laws. He did not specify what were these provisions were but obviously they justified the presidential veto.

 But for most of the lawmakers, especially the senators, they blamed the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) for the huge number of presidential vetoes. As the principal link of Congress to the Palace, administration ally Sen. Sergio Osmeña specifically pointed to PLLO head Manuel Mamba as the one in charge of this crucial function of coordination.

Osmeña minced no words and pointed to the PLLO as having been not diligent in their duties to ensure close coordination of the executive branch with the two legislative chambers. “The PLLO should be much more hands on,” Osmeña pointed out. And if I may, more leg work for the PLLO staff rather than sit in their air-conditioned offices.

Mamba argued, however, the lawmakers have only themselves to blame if their pet bills were vetoed. Some of the vetoed bills reportedly contain infirmities while others simply did not meet the Aquino administration’s priority legislative agenda. Mamba stressed the President is “very meticulous” and does not want to sign bills into law “just like that” without asking for inputs from concerned departments.

In particular, Mamba cited many of the vetoed local bills merely sought changing of names of roads and streets and conversion of local into national roads that failed the requirements of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Using Mamba’s argument, this should explain why other conversion bills passed the test while others did not. For instance, P-Noy signed last March Republic Acts (RA) 10408 converting Pasolo to Rincon road in Valenzuela into national road; and RA 10402, converting the provincial road traversing 7 barangays in Solano, Cagayan going to Macutay of Rizal, Kalinga into a national road. They may be laws of local application but they certainly have implications in the annual budget of the DPWH which now assumes their repair and maintenance henceforth.

But how would Mamba explain P-Noy having made time to approve a local bill and signed it into law last May 7 as RA 10529. This simply renamed the police regional office 11 at Sitio Catitipan, Barangay Communal Buhangin district in Davao City as Camp Quintin M. Merecido. Is this so vital legislation to qualify for enactment?

The PLLO, headed by Mamba, reportedly has a staff of 40 people to do the legwork needed between Malacañang and Congress. They are supposed to coordinate with senators and congressmen in the crafting of bills, especially those included in the common legislative agenda.

But Mamba was obviously too busy attending to his own local politics in Cagayan where he has been feuding with his political rivals, including Senate president Juan Ponce Enrile.

On the eve of Congress resuming session, President Aquino invited pro-administration House leaders and allies to a luncheon meeting at the Palace last Monday. It was in that meeting P-Noy made it clear Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. will continue to lead as House Speaker to help shepherd his administration’s bills that need to be enacted before the end of his term in June 2016.

At the Senate, it is still Enrile as Senate president of course who will preside the final sessions before the 15th Congress officially goes on sine die adjournment. It might also be symbolic for Enrile to bang the gavel perhaps for the last time.

With the results of the last May 13 elections going the way of the P-Noy Senate ticket, administration ally Sen. Frank Drilon has already declared his bid to become the Senate president of the incoming 16th Congress.

At the Senate, there are five “graduating” senators who are scheduled to deliver their respective valedictory speeches. The five are: Senators Edgardo Angara, Joker Arroyo, Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, and Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr. They are on their second and last term of office.

 P-Noy confirmed the other day he would appoint Lacson and Pangilinan, two of his staunch administration allies at the Senate, to key positions in government — if not as Cabinet members. There are several other Liberal Party allies of the President also “graduating” in Congress being eyed for possible posts in the executive branch.

Perhaps, veteran lawmakers could do a better job at the PLLO rather than seeing the specter of more bills vetoed in the next Congress.