MANILA, Philippines - Senators called yesterday for better coordination between the Senate and Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) Secretary Manuel Mamba when the 16th regular session of Congress opens in July.
Senators Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Antonio Trillanes IV, Gregorio Honasan and Sergio Osmeña IV made the call after President Aquino vetoed the proposed Rights of Internally Displaced Persons Act of 2013 and the bill that would have given 75 percent discount to centenarians in restaurants and other business establishments.
Mamba said the President also vetoed 65 out of 200 local bills approved by the 15th Congress.
“The PLLO should be much more hands on,†Osmeña said.
Marcos said the executive should be more consistent in pursuing priority legislation as discussed in the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council.
Trillianes, for his part, called for better monitoring and coordination by the PLLO.
Honasan acknowledged the veto power of the President but said it could be overturned by a two-thirds vote of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Mamba, meanwhile, said the President is “very meticulous†and does not want to sign bills into law “just like that†without asking for inputs of concerned departments.
He said many of the vetoed bills, which sought to convert municipal, city and provincial roads into national roads, did not meet the requirements of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
“The problem is whatever we do at the PLLO, if the senators approve the local bills – the pet bills of their congressmen – we cannot do anything,†he added.
Mamba admitted the need for coordination with lawmakers to improve legislation.