Senate bill filed allowing Duterte to realign funds, direct ops of private hospitals for COVID-19 response

A bill was filed in the Senate on Monday seeking to declare the existence of a national emergency and to authorize President Rodrigo Duterte to exercise powers necessary to address the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) situation.

Authored by Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Senator Pia Cayetano, Senate Bill No. 1413 titled "We Heal as One Act," seeks to authorize Duterte to "allocate cash, funds, investments, including unutilized or unreleased subsidies and transfers, held by any government-owned and controlled corporation or any national government agency."

It also empowers the President to "direct the operation of any privately-owned hospitals and medical health facilities, including other establishments to house health workers, serve as quarantine areas, quarantine centers, medical relief, and aid distribution locations, or other temporary medical facilities," when the public interest so requires.

He may likewise direct the operation of public transportation for mobility of medical workers and other authorized persons.

"The management and operation of the foregoing enterprises shall be retained by the owners of the enterprise, who shall render a full accounting to the President or his duly authorized representative," the bill read.

Under the proposed measure, the President may take over the operations of the said enterprises--subject to limits and safeguards of the 1987 Constitution--if the said establishments "unjustifiably refuse or signified that they are no longer capable of operating their enterprises" for COVID-19 response.

A special session at the Senate will be held on Monday to tackle the said bill.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Acting Senate Majority Leader Sherwin Gatchalian, Senators Pia Cayetano, Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, Panfilo Lacson, Lito Lapid, Manny Pacquiao, Grace Poe, Ralph Recto, Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr., and Francis Tolentino were present when the session was opened past 10 a.m.

It has been suspended in the meantime as they await for the attendance of two more senators to reach a quorum.

Cayetano will sponsor the bill on the floor.

Sotto assured that the bill they filed does not include "emergency powers" for the President.

"Walang emergency powers na sinasabi dito. Authority ang sinasabi natin to use the funds available and generally. ang pondong gagamitin, hindi manggagaling sa GAA ng 2020, manggagaling sa mga GOCCs. In other words, off-budget, kaya wala dapat kabahan," Sotto said in a radio interview. — RSJ, GMA News