By Mario Casayuran
Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has joined a Senate colleague in moving for the exemption of government officials from the coverage of the Bank Secrecy Law.
Senator Leila de Lima
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
While a bill to be filed by de Lima simply states that it would cover government officials, the bill filed by Senator Panfilo M. Lacson wanted to cover government officials and employees.
Both bills are seeking to minimize or eliminate corruption in government service.
In the last May 2019 mid-term elections, human rights lawyer Chel Diokno backed Lacson’s bill, which seeks to exclude government officials and employees from the coverage of the Bank Secrecy Law.
“Our bank secrecy laws are among the strictest in the world. If government officials are exempted, it would be easier to investigate corruption in the bureaucracy,” Diokno said in a statement.
“We should support this proposal from Senator Lacson. This is a good step toward transparency,” he added.
A press statement from the detained lady legislator said she would file a bill on this matter, including nine other bills in her second round of filing measures at the Senate,
This includes a measure seeking to strengthen transparency in government and accountability in the rampant extrajudicial killings (EJKs) under the Duterte regime.
In her second batch of priority measures, de Lima will resubmit the Anti-Extrajudicial Killing Bill and a bill establishing a Joint Congressional Intelligence Committee (JCIC) to scrutinize the use of intelligence fund.
De Lima also wants to scrutinize the billions of pesos of government intelligence funds to ensure it's being used to conduct legitimate intelligence activities, especially in connection with the government’s war on illegal drugs.
The lady Senator from Bicol is also expected to refile other priority legislation in connection with the protection of women in state custody, welfare of refugees and strengthening of the Party List system.
Also included in De Lima’s legislative push in the 18th Congress is to strengthen the Philippine National Police (PNP) Human Rights Affairs Office and regulate the operations of Social Welfare and Development Agencies (SWDA), while giving them assistance to enable them to reach more disadvantaged Filipinos.
De Lima will also refile two other measures aiming to declare July 12 as “West Philippine Sea Victory Day” to mark the country’s arbitration victory over China over the West Philippine Sea (WPS) dispute and to increase the punishment on persons committing perjury under oath.
Last week, De Lima filed the first batch of her priority measures in the 18th Congress, including the Human Rights Defenders, Prison Reform Bill Criminal Investigation Bill, Unified Corrections and Jail Management Bill, CHR Charter, Magna Carta for Day Care Workers, Qualified Reclusion Perpetua Bill, and National Commission for Disability Affairs Bill.
De Lima is under detention on drug-related charges.
De Lima’s two priority measures -- the Magna Carta of the Poor and the institutionalization of the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) – were enacted into laws in the 17th Congress.
Overall, De Lima has principally authored 96 bills, 57 co-authored measures, 134 principally authored resolutions and 27 co-authored resolutions in the past Congress. Of this, 116 bills and 138 resolutions were filed while in detention.