Palace: Marcos vows to fast-track passage of Anti-Dynasty, People’s Commission laws

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has urged Congress to prioritize the passage of the Anti-Dynasty Bill and the proposed Independent People’s Commission (IPC) Act.

Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro confirmed this on Tuesday following a meeting of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) at Malacañang.

Several measures have been filed in both the House of Representatives and the Senate seeking to give effect to the 1987 Constitution’s provision mandating the prohibition of political dynasties.

During the 2022 presidential campaign, Marcos suggested that political dynasties were “not necessarily bad.”

Two Senate bills proposing the creation of the IPC aim to establish a permanent, independent, and non-partisan commission that would investigate alleged anomalies and corruption in infrastructure projects at the national, local government unit (LGU), and government-owned and -controlled corporation (GOCC) levels.

Earlier, Castro said the proposed IPC could overlap with the functions of the Office of the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice, as it would also look into infrastructure-related corruption.

Aside from these two measures, Marcos also urged lawmakers to prioritize the passage of the Party-list System Reform Act and the Citizens Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability (CADENA) Act, which seeks to institutionalize transparency and accountability in public finance.

Marcos has asked both chambers of Congress to take a closer look at the four bills and fast-track their passage.

Present at the LEDAC meeting were Senate President Vicente Sotto III, House Speaker Faustino Dy III, Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos, and other congressional leaders.

In a separate statement, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said that the request for congressional action on the four bills goes beyond their immediate passage.

The executive branch will seek wide consultation with all sectors so the best ideas can be incorporated in these pieces of reform legislation, he said.

Recto said that the invitation to participate in their crafting should be extended to groups of all political persuasions.

''Broad consultations result in better laws. It is only by canvassing views and opinions from as many sources as possible is the nation guaranteed of a law that reflects their interest,'' Recto said.

The council also discussed timelines for the passage of the General Appropriations Bill and the submission of the enrolled budget measure for the President’s signature.

However, no details were given yet on when Marcos is expected to sign the 2026 budget bill.—MCG, GMA Integrated News