SENATOR JV Ejercito stressed on Tuesday his hopes to urgently pass the bill granting President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to solve the country’s perennial traffic crisis.
“I’m still hoping that it (Emergency Powers bill) would be passed. I still feel that it would be able to help the massive infrastructure development,”
Ejercito said on the sidelines of the road safety forum organized by the VERA Files and the World Health Organization in Mandaluyong City.
Ejercito, vice chair of the Senate public services committee, said procurement problems especially of new train coaches and other necessities, among others, could be solved by the proposed measure.
“All those projects that would fall under emergency powers would be exempted from the TRO (temporary restraining order), injunction, kasi ito ‘yung nakakabagal eh (because these are hampering it),” the senator said.
“So this time around there will be exemption, but SC (Supreme Court) can issue injunction para may (so there can be also) check and balance pa rin,” he added.
To make sure that transparency would still be observed by government agencies, Ejercito said all processes should be “FOI-compliant” so anybody who wants to have information could access or request through the freedom of information system.