President Benigno Aquino III on Monday ordered Congress to strengthen laws protecting whistleblowers and witnesses in crimes during his first State of the Nation Address (SONA).
“Nakikiusap po akong isulong ang Whistleblower’s Bill upang patuloy nang iwaksi ang kultura ng takot at pananahimik (I am asking you to pass the Whistleblower's Bill to combat the culture of fear and silence)," said Aquino, who vowed in his inaugural speech last June 30 to pursue “true and complete justice for all."
Several bills strengthening protection for whistle-blowers were filed in the previous Congress but were not passed.
Aquino also said he wants the government’s Witness Protection Program to be strengthened, noting that 95 percent of cases with protected witnesses ended up in convictions in 2009 and 2010.
Aquino, who enumerated in his SONA the practices in the Arroyo administration that he said resulted in budget depletion, also pushed for the passage of a “fiscal responsibility bill" where laws that necessitate funds cannot be approved unless Congress has specifically identified the source of the funding.
Aquino said the country still lacks P104.1 billion to fund laws requiring appropriations that have already been passed. He said fiscal incentives given in the past should also be reviewed.
“Ngayong naghihigpit tayo ng sinturon, kailangang balikan kung alin sa mga ito ang dapat manatili at kung ano ang dapat nang itigil (Now that we're tightening our belts, we must review which incentives need to be retained and which need to be scrapped)," he said.
Aquino said he does not want a repeat of the botched and allegedly anomalous NBN ZTE deal that allegedly lacked transparency.
The president also said he wants to see the immediate passage of the National Land Use Bill and the Anti Trust Law to encourage small and medium scale enterprises. He also urged Congress to review the National Defense Act, which was passed in 1935, to address the country’s current internal and external security needs.
Aquino can expect one of the two chambers to be friendly to his administration. His party-mate at the Liberal Party, Quezon City Rep. Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte Jr., was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives earlier in the day.
Aquino's bet for the Senate presidency, Senator Francis Pangilinan, however, withdrew from the race a day before Aquino’s SONA. Senator Juan Ponce Enrile ended up clinching the post he held in the previous Congress. - KBK
