With NAIA past peak capacity, gov’t must announce ETA of new airport

29 August 2018, Comment are Off
NAIA is near if not past peak capacity that government has no choice but build a new main gateway to the country, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said. Recto said NAIA’s passenger volume had doubled from 20.4 million in 2007 to 42 million last year. “If it is increasing...

On the Implementation of HOV lanes in EDSA

15 August 2018, Comment are Off
Kung kulang ang premium buses sa gilid ng EDSA, at walang MRT sa gitna, ano ang alternatibo? Ang sasakyan parang tubig-baha, kung barado ang lagusan, hahanap ‘yan ng ibang malulusutan. Cars, like water, will seek their own way out. Ang nangyari, inilipat lang ang volume ng...

Flooding exposed need for gyms, rescue boats, no cuts in MMDA budget—Recto

14 August 2018, Comment are Off
Climate change – and the frequent and fiercer storms it causes – is now a macroeconomic assumption of the budget as weather swings wreak havoc on many fronts, from farm harvest to child schooling when schools are used as evacuation centers. Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph...

House move to call off hearings must not lead to delayed or reenacted budget

12 August 2018, Comment are Off
It is the prerogative of the House to suspend hearings on 2019 national budget. We can only hope that after this pause, they can fast-forward their review so that the budget will arrive in the Senate as scheduled and will not jeopardize the traditional timetable of an enacted...

Dominguez, econ team “indespensible, integral” to federalism talks—Recto

12 August 2018, Comment are Off
The country’s economic managers are “integral and indispensable to the national conversation” on federalism, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said. “You don’t shut them out of the discussions; you bring them in–because the cost of federalism is front and center of...

Recto : PH fisheries woes need durable solutions, not stop gaps

09 August 2018, Comment are Off
In light of the House proposal for duty-free importation of fish to tame inflation, a resolution has been filed in the Senate for a probe into the state of fisheries so “that permanent solutions, and not just stop gap measures, will guarantee steady supply of a staple of the...

Settling of Govt’s P195 B IRA debt is federalism test case – Recto

08 August 2018, Comment are Off
The first test of the administration promise that federalism will funnel more funds to grassroots is for it to immediately comply with the Supreme Court decision raising the share of local governments from national tax collections. “The administration is being presented with the...

Recto: P25 B Nat’l ID must end woes of 7 M Pinoys without birth certificate

07 August 2018, Comment are Off
With a price tag of P25 billion, the National ID project should be able to solve the problem of 7.5 million Filipinos without birth certificates, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said. “That should be one of the outcomes of the project,” Recto said. “If there will be a...