Speaker Martin Romualdez on Sunday said the House of Representatives will prioritize digital transformation bills such as the E-Governance or E-Government Act when it resumes its session today.
“We will expedite the passage of these measures to implement the pronouncements of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Davos, Switzerland on his desire for the country to catch up with other nations in digital evolution,” Romualdez said.
Mr. Marcos, in his meetings during the World Economic Forum 2023 in Davos, vowed to address slow internet connectivity and cybersecurity issues as well as to digitalize the bureaucracy.
“It’s unfortunate because some of the studies we’ve made [show] the general consumer, if you want to call them that, talks to every facet of their lives through the Internet, except for the government,” the President said.
Romualdez said House priorities for this year also include 11 other important bills identified in October during the meeting of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council.
The proposals are among those enumerated by President Marcos in his first State of the Nation Address in July.
“These measures are components of the President’s Agenda for Prosperity, which we fully support,” the Speaker said.
Romualdez said the House would work with the Senate for the expeditious enactment of various bills the larger chamber had approved on third and final reading before Congress started its Christmas recess last month, including the Internet Transactions/E-Commerce Bill.
Like the proposed E-Governance/E-Government Act, he said the Internet Transactions Bill would contribute to attaining the President’s digital transformation goal.
Other priority measures are as follows: 1. The Enactment of an Enabling Law for the Natural Gas Industry; 2. Amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA); 3. The Unified System of Separation, Retirement, and Pension; 4. The National Land Use Act; 5. The National Defense Act; 6. The National Government Rightsizing Program; 7. The Budget Modernization Bill; 8. The Department of Water Resources Bill; 9.
Establishing the Negros Island Region; 10. Magna Carta for Filipino Seafarers; and 11. The Establishment of Regional Specialty Hospitals.
