Zubiri: Senate hearings on Maharlika Fund bill might start mid-February

The Senate might start deliberations on the bill creating Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) by middle of February next year, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said Friday.

The lawmaker made the statement as he reiterated that the Senate will await for the final version of the House of Representatives.

Since the sessions are adjourned in both houses of Congress, Zubiri said all the bills passed by the Lower House can only be transferred or referred to the Senate on January 23, 2023.

After which, the Senate leader said the House-approved bill will go through first reading then it will be referred to at least four committees, particularly the committee on banks, financial institutions, and the currencies, which will be the lead panel, and the committees on government corporations and public enterprises; ways and means; and finance as secondary committees.

"After the referral to the proper committees, it will be now up to the chairmen to schedule the hearings for discussion which could be by middle of February pa. So please ask Sen. Mark Villar what his plan may be as he most possibly will be the lead Chairman to tackle this measure," he said.

"We respect the committee system in the Senate and we will study through the hearings and plenary debates all measures with a fine-tooth comb to make sure every bill or proposal would be good for our people and our country," he added.

Zubiri also emphasized that the speed of the passage of the MIF bill will depend on how Villar will shepherd the deliberations on the measure.

"The speed of the passage of the measure is dependent on the ability of the chairman and the quality of work that is put in during the hearings and debates. That is how it is in the Senate and that’s how it’s always been in this institution," he said.

Earlier, Zubiri said he already told President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. that the MIF bill will undergo rigorous discussion in the upper chamber.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed on third and final reading the MIF bill.

Marcos had certified the measure as urgent, paving the way for its second and third reading approvals on the same day.

In an interview Friday, Senator Imee Marcos said Zubiri will set up a panel which will scrutinize the MIF bill in the Senate.

"I think there's going to be a panel set up by the Senate president," she said.

Zubiri earlier said he will ask Senators Sonny Angara, finance committee chair; Sherwin Gatchalian, ways and means committee chair; Grace Poe, economic affairs committee chair; Mark Villar, banks and financial institutions committee chair; and Alan Cayetano, government-owned and -controlled corporations committee chair, to look into the proposal and give the Senate a feedback on the essence of the fund.

Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva on Thursday night said he and other senators would "definitely be studying this measure during the session break to prepare for hearings and debates when we resume sessions next month."

On the other hand, the Senate minority bloc questioned Malacanang's certification of the MIF bill as urgent.

"Certify urgent? Eh kung ang gawin munang urgent kaya ay ang pagbaba ng presyo ng pagkain para may disenteng Noche Buena, ang pagtaas ng sweldo ng mga manggagawa lalo ang mga teacher at health workers, at ang ayuda sa matatanda, solo parents at mga may kapansanan?" Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros said in a statement Friday.

"This Maharlika wealth fund is premature, and a misplaced priority. Distracted na naman tayo. Our economy is already hurting now, imagine the world of pain we'll be in if we rush head first into a P250 billion mistake," she added.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III, on the other hand, said the certification of urgency will give the impression that the lawmakers need to "speed things up."

"I hope this will not be the feeling in the Senate. The Maharlika Fund will have extensive effects and ramifications not only to our generation but potentially to future generations of Filipinos. Hence, this should not be rushed. Haste makes waste," he said.—AOL, GMA Integrated News