Marikina lawmaker Quimbo bats for Bayanihan 3 COVID-19 aid law

Marikina City Representative Stella Quimbo on Monday urged her fellow lawmakers as well as the executive branch to support the passage of a third Bayanihan Law to further help the country rise from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a privilege speech, Quimbo announced that she would file on Tuesday her version of the proposed Bayanihan 3 outlining interventions amounting to at least P340 billion.

"I urge this august chamber, our counterparts in the Senate, and the executive department to come together anew and enact a Bayanihan 3," she said.

"Mala-telenovela ang haba ng pandemya, kaya’t kelangan na din ng part 3 sa ayuda. Bayanihan pa more ang kelangan," she added.

According to Quimbo, she envisions the third part of the Bayanihan Law to further provide assistance to the poorest of Filipinos amid the ongoing pandemic.

"This is to ensure that those who continue to be most impacted by lockdowns can cover basic needs, and those who must isolate due to COVID can rest easy knowing that their families will be provided for while they cannot work," she said.

"We also need additional unemployment assistance through DOLE, as so many workers continue to be out of work, and many more are still at risk until we get a handle of the COVID situation," she added.

Bayanihan 3 should also incentivize businesses to preserve and restore jobs, Quimbo said, as she pointed out that businesses are currently struggling financially and workers are at risk of losing their jobs.

"Bayanihan 3 should provide worker subsidies to pay for testing and sick leaves for workers with COVID. Isama na rin and overtime pay to enable staggered work hours and multiple shifts, which will maximize the deployment of workforces amidst social distancing requirements," she said.

"If businesses are subsidized, then we can help to minimize the risk of job loss for workers," she added.

Moreover, Bayanihan 3 should also provide the enough funds for the retooling, reskilling, and other capacity-building programs for businesses critically-impacted by COVID-19, as well as internet allowances for teachers and students, Quimbo said.

At the same time, the proposed stimulus package should also ensure that the country will be able to procure the needed number of vaccines to finally get rid of COVID-19, she added.

"Bayanihan 3 should authorize the Executive to enter into advance purchase agreements with vaccine suppliers. We should all be reminded that the vaccine is the only way that we can return to our original trajectory of growth. We must prepare well for the advent of the vaccine," she said.

Quimbo also envisions the Bayanihan 3 to be prioritizing the funding for projects that are implementation-ready and highly impact economic growth, and one that promotes financial inclusion by easing the requirements for formalizing micro, small, and medium enterprises and providing them with credit mediation services.

Lastly, Bayanihan 3 should also institutionalize a long-term plan for economic resilience, especially that the country is frequently visited by typhoons and other calamities like Super Typhoon Rolly and Typhoon Ulysses which caused heavy flooding in many areas in Luzon, Quimbo said.

"A long-term plan for economic resilience shall necessarily include disaster resilience. Nang sa gayon, sa hinaharap, mas handa na ang bansa at mas madali na itong makakabangon mula sa sakuna," she added.

Quimbo urged her colleagues at the House to work for genuine resilience and not merely use it as "an excuse for non-action."

"The road to the resilience of the Philippine economy is long and possibly winding. We must take the first step now," she added.

In the Senate, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto raised the possibility of passing another Bayanihan law this year to immediately aid the victims of the series of typhoons that hit the country recently.

"If we were quick to act for a Bayanihan 1 and 2 for the pandemic, why not have a Bayanihan 3 for this typhoon?" Recto asked during the budget debates in the Senate.