Students draft mock bills vs. disinformation, corruption, labor discrimination

Three teams composed of students from four schools in Metro Manila and Baguio City were declared the winners of a mock bill drafting competition held last month at the House of Representatives at the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Quezon City.

The event was held in honor of veteran lawmaker and human rights advocate Edcel Lagman, who passed away earlier this year.

Thirteen teams composed of 89 students from 15 different schools all over the country participated, according to Howard Lopez, a project head for the competition and a student of the UP National College of Public Administration and Governance.

“The finalist teams, through simulated congressional committee hearings in Nograles Hall of the House of Representatives, exercised analytical reasoning and proposed feasible solutions to pressing societal issues,” Lopez said.

Edcel Lagman’s daughter Larah Lagman-Ramirez, legislative officer of Albay 1st District Reprentative Krisel Lagman, graced the event’s conclusion last November 8.

“The Edcel Lagman Bill Drafting Competition [is] envisioned as a platform for nurturing critical thinking, policy innovation, and legislative proficiency among the nation’s emerging leaders,” Lopez added.

‘These will prevent corruption’

“Being active on the issues of today is safeguarding the future,” shared Team Frankie and the Ube Jam Factory (Team Frankie) in an interview with GMA Integrated News.

Composed of students from Baguio’s Saint Louis University School of Law, Team Frankie bagged overall first place. 

Team Frankie’s mock bill, entitled the “Confidential & Intelligence Funds (CIF) Utilization and Accountability Act,” aims to set up stronger internal control mechanisms and an oversight board to review the country’s CIF spending, which the team says is riddled with “weaknesses.”

“These will prevent corruption, ensure the proper, effective and efficient use of the confidential funds, and punish anyone who misuses or misappropriates the CIF,” the team said about their mock bill’s proposed safeguards.

The team also won the competition’s best defense award, with team member Frank Rick Almario winning best speaker.

“This proposed bill is one of the ways to address corruption and enforce effective, efficient and proper use of the limited financial resources of the country in order to secure funds for the needs of the people,” Team Frankie added.

‘Dapat maging involved’

Meanwhile, students from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines - Manila and University of Makati School of Law comprising second placing Team House of Parliamentarians (Parliamentarians), said that it is only right for students to be versed in the lawmaking process early on since many enacted policies affect them the most.

“Ang mga estudyante ay dapat maging involved sa policymaking dahil kami ang isa sa pinakaapektado sa mga panukalang batas na ipinapasa, pati na rin ang mga susunod na henerasyon,” shared in a separate interview with GMA Integrated News.

Their 15-page mock bill aims to hold social media companies accountable for unbridled disinformation on their platforms.

“Ang unique sa panukalang batas namin ay ini-shift namin ang accountability mula sa users papunta sa mismong social media platforms,” the Parliamentarians shared.

They say that the platforms’ responsibility to safeguard truth should be codified.

“Marami na pong batas ang sinusubukang ipasa para labanan ang disinformation, pero kadalasan sa mga batas na ipinapasa, ang parusa ay sa ordinaryong users napupunta,” they said, referring primarily to the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 which criminalized libel on online spaces. 

‘Magna Carta of Alternatively-Employed Workers Act’

Overall third placer Team BHH, composed of undergraduate students of the University of the Philippines, won with their mock bill entitled the “Magna Carta of Alternatively-Employed Workers Act.”

“The Philippine labor force is undergoing a transformation marked by the rise of short-term, project-based, contractual, and platform-mediated work, such as delivery riders, online tutors, and digital gig workers, among others. Despite these, our country’s legal and institutional framework remains largely designed for traditional, long-term employment that no longer captures the full diversity of work arrangements,” the team shared in an interview with GMA Integrated News.

According to Team BHH, the bill ensures Filipino workers are “not only safeguarded but also empowered to grow in the jobs they have and the jobs that are yet to emerge.” 

“At its core, the bill tells millions of Filipino workers that they matter, regardless of the nature of their jobs,” they said.

Team BHH stressed the importance of students being knowledgeable in the lawmaking process.

“Education, if it must exist as a pillar of excellence, must be derived not only from inside the classrooms but in how we understand the lived realities of our fellow Filipinos,” the team said.

“When the youth use their knowledge to empathize, speak up, and stand for what is right, we become more than students but beacons of honor, service, and hope for our country, helping us pave the way forward,” they added. —KG, GMA Integrated News