House pushes bills before break

By Maricel V. Cruz

SPEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez on Monday rallied fellow lawmakers at the House of Representatives to exert a final concerted push in the remaining four weeks of their session to pass the pending pro-people priority measures of the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.

Addressing the plenary during the resumption of the session of the House, Romualdez welcomed back House members, expressing hope they had ample rest during the break, as he outlined the task they have to accomplish before the sine die adjournment of the First Regular Session of the 19th Congress on June 2.

“As we face the remainder of the First

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“The SOM will discuss a number of issues including the priorities of Indonesia’s chairmanship of ASEAN in 2023,” said Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah.

ASEAN Leaders will begin discussions on Wednesday of a number of important issues in order to encourage a stronger ASEAN region in facing challenges, as well as strengthening the bloc’s economic resilience.

These are in line with the theme of the Indonesian chairmanship, “ASEAN Matters: Epicenter of Growth.”

The ASEAN leaders will hold interfaces with the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), the ASEAN Youth Representatives, ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEANBAC), and the High-Level Task Force on the ASEAN Community’s Post2025 Vision.

The ASEAN leaders are also expected to adopt a roadmap on Timor Leste’s full membership in ASEAN.

The Prime Minister of Timor Leste, Taur Matan Ruak, is expected to attend the Summit as an observer for the first time.

Meanwhile, President Marcos will also participate in the 15th Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-MalaysiaPhilippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) Summit to be convened on May 11 under the chairmanship of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. With AFP

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From A1 capable Shaldag Mark V (Acero-class patrol gunboats in the PN service) will greatly boost the service’s capability to protect the country’s littoral (nearshore) zones.

Also, Ambassador Romualdez said Manila and Washington have ceased discussions on identifying new Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites in the country, as the two sides are now talking on how the nine existing sites will be developed and used.

Department of National Defense officer in charge Carlito Galvez also maintained that the EDCA sites will help the Philippines respond to disasters.

The US is now seeing the Philippines “in a different light” as the Pentagon gave President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. a military honor parade during his recent visit, according to Romualdez.

Mr. Marcos was the first foreign president to be given full military honors by Washington under President Joe Biden’s administration, the ambassador said.

The Philippines and the United States decided to expand cooperation on maritime security through but not limited to joint patrols.

In a fact sheet released by the White House, the US said that under deepening interoperability, the goal is to expand cooperation on maritime security and maritime domain awareness, including through the continued conduct of combined maritime activities, including but not limited to joint patrol.

In March, the Philippine government said it is in the process of crafting guidelines on maritime activities, including joint patrols with allies.

Romualdez also stressed that the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty is now clearer following the meeting between Marcos and US President Joe Biden.

“I think that this time, the Mutual Defense Treaty is not only clear but it also sets what are the parameters on how we will proceed in terms of invoking it,” the Filipino envoy said.

Regular Session, we have merely four weeks to complete our legislative agenda that has been prescribed by no less than our President in his first SONA plus those that have been identified as priority measures in the LEDAC (Legislative Executive Advisory Council),” Romualdez said.

“Later this afternoon (Monday) I will engage with our party leaders to see how we can make sure that the remainder of these four weeks before we adjourn sine die is used most efficiently and maximized so that we can achieve our goals in making sure that the common legislative agenda, not just of both Houses, but that of the Executive are achieved,” he added.

On Sunday, Romualdez bared that President Marcos approved 11 additional bills, including the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) as part of LEDAC, bringing to 42 from the original 31 the total number of priority administration measures.

The 11 bills include 1. Amending the AFP Fixed Term Bill, which was transmitted to the President; 2. Ease of Paying Taxes, 3. Maharlika Invest-