Noy signs 3 new laws

MANILA, Philippines –  President Aquino signed into law yesterday the bills extending for 10 years the subsidy on electricity charges for poor households, providing mandatory immunization to infants and children, and lifting the prohibition for women night workers.

In his speech during the signing ceremonies at Malacañang, the President said the new laws would impact most on the marginalized sectors of society.

Aquino said the new laws might be judged insignificant by some, “but they embody our intention to stay true to what we promised the Filipino people.”

Republic Act 10150 extending the implementation of the lifeline rate will benefit residential end-users who have difficulty paying the full cost of electricity.

It was set to expire on June 26 or 10 years after the passage of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA). More than two million low-income households nationwide will continue to benefit from discounted electricity rates.

“The extension of this measure will allow the less fortunate among us to put more of their resources into feeding themselves, or into saving enough to pay hospital or medicine bills,” Aquino said.

“In short, extending this lifeline rate allows those shackled by poverty to focus more of their resources into keeping themselves and their families alive, while also giving them access to electricity,” he added.

The enactment of RA 10152 or the mandatory basic immunization services for infants and children is consistent with the Philippines’ commitment to the United Nations 2015 Millennium Development Goals to reduce child mortality.

Under the law, all children under five years would be given free basic immunization against vaccine-preventable diseases such as pulmonary tuberculosis, Hepatitis-B, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, measles, mumps, pneumonia, meningitis and influenza.

“Specifically, this bill provides for all infants to be given the birth dose of the Hepatitis-B vaccine within 24 hours of birth. Hepatitis-B can be a crippling disease as it can lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer, among others,” Aquino said.

“It is not fair that the vaccine against Hepatitis-B can only be afforded by a privileged few. We are doing this to give these children and their families more access to health care, which the more privileged among us often take for granted,” the President said.

“Fulfilling the promise of eliminating poverty cannot be done in one stroke; and these two measures, however seemingly minor they are, will certainly affect the lives of our people,” he said.

The President said the government also wanted to level the playing field both on macro and micro levels, hence his signing of the law extending the life term of the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC).

The commission was established 10 years ago with the EPIRA in 2001, which sought to bring about reforms in the power sector. The JCPC’s task is to make sure that these reforms are carried out.

“And now, 10 years later, we still find it necessary to have a commission paying sufficient attention to this particular sector, and overseeing the continuing reforms. And thus we similarly find the continued existence of the JCPC necessary,” Aquino said.

“Right now, industries, specially our BPOs (business processes outsourcing), which are hiring women workers to perform night work, are first required to secure an exemption from the Department of Labor and Employment – and the strange thing is that this is not necessary in hiring male workers for the same assignment,” Aquino said, referring to the new law lifting the prohibition against hiring of women for night duties.

“We cannot have this type of legal technicality giving rise to sexual discrimination, especially in this day and age. And that is why we have moved as quickly as possible to amend this,” he said.

“The signing of this act is also an economic measure because many women in the BPO sector have been unduly prejudiced by this legal accident; and we must also do everything we can to protect our position as industry leaders,” the President said. – With Paolo Romero, Christina Mendez, Mayen Jaymalin, Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star)