Bayanihan to Heal as One Act

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Bayanihan to Heal as One Act
Bayanihan to Heal as One Act (Republic Act 11469) on Filipino Official Gazette.pdf
Congress of the Philippines
  • An Act Declaring the Existence of a National Emergency Arising from the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation and a National Policy in Connection Therewith, and Authorizing the President of the Republic of the Philippines for a Limited Period and Subject to Restrictions, to Exercise Powers Necessary and Proper to Carry Out the Declared National Policy and for Other Purposes
Citation Republic Act No. 11469
Territorial extent Philippines
Passed by Senate of the Philippines
PassedMarch 23, 2020
Passed by House of Representatives of the Philippines
PassedMarch 23, 2020
Signed by Rodrigo Duterte
SignedMarch 24, 2020
Effective March 25, 2020
Date of expiryJune 24, 2020
Legislative history
First chamber: Senate of the Philippines
Bill titleBayanihan To Heal As One Act
Bill citation Senate Bill No. 1418
Introduced by Tito Sotto, Pia Cayetano, Win Gatchalian, et al.
IntroducedMarch 23, 2020
First reading March 23, 2020
Second reading March 23, 2020
Third reading March 23, 2020
Committee report Committee Report No. 70
Second chamber: House of Representatives of the Philippines
Bill titleWe Heal As One Act of 2020
Bill citation House Bill No. 6616
Received from the Senate of the Philippines March 23, 2020
Member(s) in charge Alan Peter Cayetano (Pateros–Taguig), et al.
First readingMarch 23, 2020
Second readingMarch 23, 2020
Third readingMarch 23, 2020
Status: Expired

The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, also known as the Bayanihan Act, [1] and officially designated as Republic Act No. 11469, is a law in the Philippines that was enacted in March 2020 granting the President additional authority to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. [2] The word "bayanihan" is a Tagalog word for communal work.

Contents

Background

Following the sharp increase of COVID-19 cases in the country, Congress held a special session on March 23 to deliberate and pass the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. The act would allow President Rodrigo Duterte to "reallocate, realign, and reprogram" a budget of almost ₱275 billion ($5.37 billion) from the estimated ₱438 billion ($8.55 billion) national budget approved for 2020, in response to the pandemic; [3] enable him to "temporarily take over or direct the operations" of public utilities and privately owned health facilities and other necessary facilities "when the public interest so requires" for quarantine, the accommodation of health professionals, and the distribution and storage of medical relief; and "facilitate and streamline" the accreditation of testing kits. [4]

Legislative history

Senators during a special session to tackle the passage of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, March 23, 2020 SPECIAL SESSION ON COVID-19.jpg
Senators during a special session to tackle the passage of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, March 23, 2020

In the House of Representatives, the bill was introduced as House Bill No. 6616 with House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano of Pateros–Taguig as its principal sponsor and was defended on the floor by Deputy Speaker Luis Raymund Villafuerte of Camarines Sur's 2nd district. Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea addressed the session, stressing that the president needed "standby powers" to address the emergency. [5] Some representatives questioned the nature, usage, and necessity of the "standby powers", claiming its susceptibility to abuse and corruption. [6]

In the Senate of the Philippines, the bill was introduced as Senate Bill No. 1418 with Senate President Tito Sotto and Senator Pia Cayetano as its principal sponsors. Under the bill, Senator Cayetano said that over 18 million Filipino households living below the poverty line would also receive financial incentives of around ₱5,000–8,000 ($97.45–155.92) per month for two months. [7] Senators amended their version of the bill to include financial compensation of around ₱100,000 ($1,965.33) to be given by PhilHealth to health professionals who contracted the virus, as well as the provision of around ₱1 million-worth ($19,653.27) of financial aid to their families. [8]

Both versions of the bill reportedly removed the usage of the term "emergency powers", replacing it with "authority". It also removed the term "take over of public utilities and private businesses", limiting President Duterte's abilities at most to "direct the operations" of such enterprises. [9] The House version of the bill passed the House of Representatives in a 284–9 vote without abstentions, [10] while its Senate version unanimously passed the Senate. [11] President Duterte signed the bill into law the following day on March 24, 2020. [12] [2]

Manila paper backlash

At the start of the special session at the House of Representatives, House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano along with his fellow congresspeople, did a photo op showing Cayetano and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea holding up a board covered with Manila paper with the message, "Together with doctors and frontliners, we went to work for you, so please stay home for us." [13] This prompted an online backlash on social media with citizens criticizing the lawmakers for comparing themselves with the pandemic healthcare frontliners. [14] The photo also became fodder for memes with people replacing the Manila paper message with various images. [15] [16] Cayetano responded to the backlash saying, "If you ask me to hold up a sign again, and even if the sign curses at me but it gets people to read and gets people to stay home, I will do it again and again and again." [17] [18]

Expiration and extension

The law expired on June 24, 2020, without a resolution of it being extended. Although there were bills passed in Congress to extend the law until September 2020, the president did not certify these as urgent, prompting the bills to lapse. [19] [20] [21]

The distribution of the social amelioration program (SAP) and other cash aids from the Philippine government were not affected by the expiration of the law. [19]

The Bayanihan to Recover as One Bill, was filed on June 1, 2020. [22]

Provisions

The law provides the President of the Philippines the power to implement temporary emergency measures to respond to the crisis brought about by COVID-19, such as: [2]

The President of the Philippines shall submit a weekly report to Congress, every Monday, of all acts done for this law including the amount and corresponding utilization of funds. The Congress shall form a Joint Congressional Oversight Committee consisting of four members each from the Senate and the House of Representatives who are appointed by the Senate President and the House Speaker. [2]

Under this law, a penalty of two months imprisonment or a fine of not less than ten thousand pesos (₱10,000.00) but not more than one million pesos (₱1,000,000.00) or both shall be meted to offenses such as: [2]

Implementation

NBI summons Mayor Sotto

After the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon and before the enactment of the Bayanihan law, Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto allowed temporarily the limited operation of the city's tricycles for use of health care workers, government personnel and patients despite the national government's ban on the operation of public transportation. Sotto mentioned that banning all tricycles in the city would bring more risk to the city's health situation. [23] After he aired the views and experiences of the local government of Pasig, Sotto complied with the inclusion of tricycles in the public transportation ban. [24]

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), through its Deputy Director Ferdinand Lavin, confirmed on April 1, 2020, that NBI sent an invitation letter to Sotto for violation of Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. Lavin said that Sotto is scheduled to appear at the bureau on April 7, 2020, at 10 am. Sotto responded by saying that he had already complied with the national government's order to stop tricycle operations prior to the implementation of the law. [25] [26] Senate President Tito Sotto, an uncle of the mayor, criticized the move in a tweet, stating "NBI will be well advised to be cautious in their interpretation of the law I principally authored. Any so-called violation of RA 11469 can't be retroactive!". [27] Liberal Party president and Senator Francis Pangilinan also questioned the NBI's actions, stating the unconstitutionality of criminalizing an act committed before the law was passed.[ citation needed ]

Social media responded heavily with criticism towards the NBI for allegedly singling out the mayor, even comparing the situation to that of Senator Koko Pimentel's case, who had violated quarantine protocols a few days prior at the Makati Medical Center, but was given consideration by the government. [28]

NBI investigates Senator Pimentel III

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) spokesperson Deputy Director Ferdinand Lavin said that the bureau was also investigating Senator Aquilino Pimentel III for alleged violation of the Bayanihan Heal as One Act. Director Eric Distor of the NBI confirmed that Pimentel would also be invited to the bureau to explain. He would be summoned when his self-quarantine ended. [29] [30] [31]

Pimentel had undergone testing for COVID-19 and was informed that he was positive for the disease while he was at the Makati Medical Center, accompanying his pregnant wife who was scheduled to give birth. [29]

See also

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References

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