The Party-list Coalition Foundation Inc. on Friday expressed its unwavering support for the leadership of Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Led by Ako Bikol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, the coalition of party-list groups issued a manifesto supporting Romualdez.
“We commend Speaker Romualdez’s exceptional vision and unwavering dedication to achieving balance and fairness in the work we do. Under his leadership, the House has successfully tackled critical challenges and advanced initiatives that have strengthened our economy and safeguarded the rights and freedoms of all Filipinos. We firmlysupport his leadership and look forward to working together to address the urgent needs of our nation,” the coalition statement said.
Romualdez on Friday said the signing into law of a bill condoningbillions of pesos of debt of agrarian reform beneficiaries will help many farmers boost productivity.
The House of Representatives approved on Dec. 12, 2022 its version of the measure, or House Bill (HB) 6336, while the Senate approved thecounterpart measure on March 6, 2023. The measure is now awaiting the President’s signature.
The bill condoning agrarian reform debt is among the 31 the House has approved to date, out of the 42 priority measures President Marcos had identified through the Legislative-Executive Advisory Council (LEDAC).
“When our farmers are freed from the burden of debt, they would be able to invest more in their land and improve their productivity. This can lead to better yields and profits, which can help improve the lives of our farmers and their families,” Romualdez said.
“This relief to hundreds of thousands of agrarian reform beneficiaries gains even more significance now that we are facing the twin challenges of increased prices of farm inputs, particularlyfertilizers, and the harmful effects of climate change on the agriculture sector,” he added.
The measure condones P57.557 billion in principal debt of 610,054 agrarian reform beneficiaries tilling a total of 1,173,101.57 hectares of agrarian reform lands.
In addition, the measure stops the execution of a final and executory administrative or judicial ruling due to the failure of an agrarian reform beneficiary to pay the 30-year amortization plus 6 percent annual interest that would disqualify him and result in the cancellation of his agrarian reform title.
“This measure would complement the various programs and assistance to our farmers the Department of Agriculture is implementing to uplift the lives of our farmers,” Romualdez said.
Meanwhile, Romualdez expressed gratitude to members of the House for approving most of the priority bills identified by Malacanang during the first session of the current Congress, including the national budget.
Romualdez made the statement as Congress is set to adjourn sine die next week. Congress has three session days left to mark the closing of the First Regular Session of the 19th Congress.
Romualdez said that during the session, the chamber approved on third and final reading a total of 31 out of the 42 priority bills identified by President Marcos and the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
The latest measures that have been passed were the 30-year National Infrastructure Program and the proposed National Land Use Act.
“We are proud of our collective accomplishment – 31 out of 42 and counting. As of today (May 25), we have achieved a significant part of our goal in less than a year of session,” Romualdez said.
“I thank our colleagues for their hard work, as well as the various political parties in the House which have committed to support the passage of priority measures determined by the President and the LEDAC and the House itself,” he said.
Romualdez said the measures, when finally enacted into law, will “support the President’s vision of keeping the economy on the high growth path and generating more jobs and income opportunities for our people.
