President Duterte signs law authorizing himself special powers to address COVID-19
President Duterte signs law authorizing himself special powers to address COVID-19
President
Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed a law on March 24, 2020, that will authorized
himself to exercise additional powers necessary to address the coronavirus
disease 2019 (Covid-19) situation in the country.
Currently,
there are 308,594 COVID-19 cases and 13,069 deaths related to COVID-19 have
been recorded all over the world1. Locally, there are 380 COVID-19 cases and 35
related deaths, as of 22 March 20202. These figures are very far from the
Department of Health data three weeks ago – with just five (5) cases on 5 March
2020
When
local transmission has been discovered and the confirmed cases that day reached
204, President Rodrigo Duterte, by virtue of executive power on March 9, 2020,
formally declared a state of public health emergency in the Philippines through
Proclamation No. 9225 in order to mobilize governmental and non-governmental
agencies to respond to the outbreak of COVID-19.
Three
(3) days after the declaration (state of public health emergency in the
Philippines), President Duterte announced the partial lockdown, otherwise known
as the “Community Quarantine”
of Metro Manila starting at 12 midnight on 15 March 2020 until 14 April 2020.
The said community quarantine suspended land, domestic air and domestic sea
travel to and from Metro Manila to further control the spread of the virus.
With
the partial lockdown, President Duterte likewise ordered the banning of mass
gatherings; suspension of work in the Executive Department, but with skeletal
workforces; the Department of Labor and Employment to encourage flexible work
arrangements in the private sector; and the Department of Transportation to
issue guidelines on social distancing in public transportation, among others.
On this day also, there are 52 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, and
mostly are confined and residing in Metro Manila.
However,
the senate passed Senate
Bill No. 1418, in substitution of S.B No. 1413, titled
“Bayanihan to Heal as One Act,” was approved by senates that were
physically present in the plenary.
The
Republic Act No. 11469 or
the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act was introduced by Senate President Vicente
Sotto III, authorizes President Duterte to “reprogram, reallocate, and
realign any appropriation” in the 2020 budget which will be used in the
fight against Covid-19.
This
law will allow the President to freely move funds from both the National
Government and the Government-owned and Controlled Corporations to generate
funds for the Emergency Subsidy Program to ensure that the 18 million low
income households in the Philippines have enough provisions during the
lockdown. Moreover, the President is given the authority to purchase, in the most
expeditious manner, goods that are necessary for the protection of frontline
health workers, laboratory and medical equipment, medical supplies, tools,
medicines, and testing kits, among others, that shall ensure the immediate
detection and treatment of COVID-19 patients.
According
to him (Sotto) in his explanatory note that: “In order to ensure that there will be no abuse in the exercise of the
abovementioned powers, this law has provided safeguards, such as the limit of
time when the powers shall be exercised, the reportorial requirement, the
creation of a Congressional Oversight Committee, and the authority given to the
Congress to withdraw such powers granted under this measure anytime.”