Palace spokesman Harry Roque said on Wednesday it would be ideal to extend the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act for another three months to give President Rodrigo Duterte more flexibility in handling the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I think a three-month period is ideal,” Roque said in an interview with the ABS-CBN News Channel.
The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act is supposed to expire three months after being signed. Duterte signed the act into law on March 25.
The law granted Duterte 30 special powers, such as the realignment of the national budget; the granting of cash aid through the social amelioration program to specific households as well as special risk allowance for health workers, including financial aid if they contract or die of Covid-19; and requiring corporations to prioritize manufacturing of materials and services needed amid the crisis.
“I think it, definitely, is necessary to give us at least 90 days and we’ll see from there if at the end of 90 days, there’s a need for emergency powers still, then it can be extended until December,” Roque said.
Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez has filed House Bill 6811, which aims to amend the Bayanihan law’s sunset clause and extend the bill’s effectivity to six months.
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua also proposed to extend the act’s effectivity to until the end of the year.
As of May 26, the Philippines has recorded 14,669 Covid-19 cases, with 886 deaths and 3.412 recoveries. John Ezekiel J. Hirro