25pimentel2.jpg — Newly-elected Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III uses the gavel in adjourning the opening session of the Senate under the 17th Congress on Monday morning (July 25, 2016) at the Plenary Hall of the Senate Building in Pasay City. The senators are set to proceed to the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Quezon City to join their colleagues at the House of Representatives in hearing the first State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) of President Rodrigo R. Duterte at 4 p.m. Monday. (MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III on Thursday said he saw no reason why the House of Representatives would not pass the proposed Freedom of Information (FOI) following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to have it implemented in the executive branch.
In the Senate, Pimentel was confident that a more refined measure would be approved by the Senate committee on public information.
He noted that the FOI bill was the pet measure of Senator Grace Poe, who he said wanted to retain the chairmanship of the committee.
It was Poe who initiated that passage of the bill at the Senate but the same measure failed to get the approval of the House during the 16th Congress.
“Kami sa Senate, nandyan si Senadora Grace Poe. ‘Yan po ang kanyang pet bill. At pinag-usapan nga namin kahapon din yan na kaya nga gusto nyang maging chairman ng public info committee, ire-refine nya ‘yung kanyang bill and she wants to make sure na kung ano ‘yung porma ‘yung pagkapasa last time, ganun din. Kasi ayaw nyang ma-water down,” Pimentel said.
“So I’m sure confident sila na papasa po ‘yang FOI bill sa Senado (they are confident that the FOI bill will be passed in the Senate).”
“Kung meron nang FOI ang Presidente, wala akong maisip na dahilan para tanggihan ‘yan ng House of Representatives (If the President has issued an executive order on FOI, I can see no reason why the House of Representatives would not pass it),” the Senate leader added. (MNS)