Sen. Grace Poe prodded the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Thursday to provide senators with necessary data on the projected impact of proposed amendments to the Public Service Act (PSA) on covered industries such as power generation, transportation, broadcasting, and telecommunications.
Poe pointed out that “liberalizing certain sectors is going through a hurdle because of national security concerns that we have to balance with economic concerns,” signalling to Neda officials that “If you are not going to make our argument strong enough by providing data, we might not be able to get what we want from here, which is the spirit of the law—liberalizing our economy.”
Poe raised the issue during the Development Budget Coordination Committee briefing for senators on the 2022 National Expenditure Program, telling Neda chief Karl Chua: “Since you are there already, I would like to air a few concerns.”
She continued: “As you [Chua] know, we are already in the period of amendments for the Public Service Act,” adding: “Perhaps, I would like to get from you, if let us say, we pass this, what are your projections? Which industries will benefit from it? How much can it add to our economy?”
At the same time, Poe noted that while Neda is the lead agency assigned to the PSA, “there has been feedback saying the agency’s support to the crafting of the bill has been found wanting, particularly on research and data.”
She also asked Chua to provide lawmakers relevant information on how the Philippine economy and local sectors and industries will benefit from the passage of the bill.
Poe added: “We will tackle the amendments by next week. If you’re really serious about having a successful version of the bill passed, I think that you should give us projections for telcos, airlines, and shipping, especially the foreign ownership limits in all countries.”
President Duterte certified as urgent immediate passage of the amended Public Service Act and other measures seen to boost the country’s economic recovery from the pandemic.
Chua conveyed to lawmakers projections that as soon as the updated Public Service Act is passed into law, there will be marked interest especially in the telecommunications and transport sectors, considering the huge gap between what the country can provide and how much it actually needs.
Source: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2021/09/10/poe-to-neda-give-us-data-to-justify-psa/