Angara believes it's time for gov't to rightsize bureaucracy

It's about time for the government to rightsize the bureaucracy as some agencies might have already finished its mandate, Senator Sonny Angara said Tuesday.

"Well, panahon na palagay ko dahil matagal nang hindi nagawa ito at sa ibang bansa ginagawa talaga ito on a regular basis o pana-panahon," Angara said in an interview on Unang Balita.

(I think it is about time to rightsize the government because it has not been pushed for a long time. In other countries, they do it on a regular basis.)

"Dahil 'yung mga ibang ahensya minsan nagkakaroon ng duplication o minsan 'yung layunin ng isang ahensya or korporasyon ay maaaring nagawa na, natapos na ang kanyang mandato. Maaaring i-fold na lang ito o i-merge sa ibang ahensya," he added.

(Sometimes, there are duplication of functions in some government agencies. There are also government offices whose mandates have already been accomplished. These agencies could be removed or merged with other offices.)

The Senate committee on finance chairman said the Upper Chamber will hold hearings on these proposals if his colleagues will file bills seeking the rightsizing of the government agencies.

Among the issues that he expects to discuss during the hearing are the effects of rightsizing in the government processes and its effects on the employment status of some state workers.

To protect the government employees who might be displaced by the rightsizing efforts of the administration, Angara said the state must offer reasonable benefits.

"Ang ginagawa sa pribadong sektor, ginagawang  attractive or maganda ang benepisyo...kaya maraming naga-avail dahil kahit wala pa sila sa retirement age e pag maganda ang benepisyo e inuunahan na nila ang kanilang retirement," Angara said.

(In the private sector, they make the benefits attractive for those who will be affected by their rightsizing efforts. That's why many of their employees are availing of the early retirement option.)

Further, the senator said state workers who will be displaced should be given two or three years to prepare for the merging or dissolution of the agencies that they belong to, considering the current economic environment in the country.

"Siguro dapat hindi biglaan ito dahil medyo challenging ang ating economic environment or maraming hirap, hirap maghanap ng trabaho. So siguro hindi biglaan, may kaunting abiso in two or three years. Kung apektado ang kanilang ahensya, hindi overnight 'yung epekto," he said.

(The dissolution or merging of government agencies should not be done overnight considering that our economic environment is quite challenging. It is hard for some of the Filipinos to find jobs. They should be advised two or three years before the rightsizing takes effect.)

The lawmaker also backed Senator Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III's proposal to include the Senate and the House of Representatives in the administration's plan to rightsize the bureaucracy.

"Buong pamahalaan dapat kasama. Lahat ng ahensya dahil pag pinag-uusapan ang rightsizing, palagay ko wala namang dapat exempted," he said.

(The entire government should be included in the rightsizing efforts. I think there should be no exemptions.)

Last week, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said it is planning to ask Congress to give President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. authority to rightsize the bureaucracy in order to save funds.

DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said they will be checking 187 agencies, departments, offices, and bureaus, including government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs)—which employ an estimated two million personnel—for redundant or overlapping functions.

Right after the DBM made the statement on the rightsizing of bureaucracy, at least three senators have expressed support to the proposal while some expressed reservations as there are issues that should be addressed first before pushing through with the idea.—AOL, GMA News