Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III on Thursday stressed that the only viable course of action for Congress to fix some serious errors in the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) bill is to recall its approval and bring it back to the plenary for reconsideration.
“Congress’ imprimatur is needed to rectify the MIF. The discrepancies and ambiguities found in the approved bill cannot be corrected without the risk of falsification of legislative documents,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel was referring to what he described as “glaring errors and discrepancies” in the MIF that Congress passed before it adjourned sine die.
He had earlier cited, for instance, the different terms and prescriptive periods found in Sections 50 and 51 of MIF, saying that it could be that the intention might really be two different things – for which only the plenary can clarify.
By returning it to Congress, there will be more opportunities to fine-tune the measure and clarify ambiguities surrounding the “hastily-enacted” MIF, according to Pimentel.
Pimentel said, however, that the bill is unsalvageable and reiterated his opposition to the measure.
Earlier, Pimentel said that the secretariat of both houses of Congress are not allowed to change the words embedded into the measure by elected officials of Congress.
Pimentel had earlier warned of potential legal cases such as “falsification of legislative documents” if the text of the bill–which both houses of Congress had already passed on third reading–was changed.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri meanwhile said those who will steal more than P50 million from the fund will be slapped with plunder, a non-bailable offense that carries a penalty of 20 years to a lifetime jail term and other multiple charges.
Zubiri said provisions of the law on plunder were among the safeguards included in the controversial MIF bill which was certified as “urgent” by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
He urged the public to forego their worries about the misuse of investment funds to the reiteration of the different laws under the penal code. The penal provisions, he said, are part of the law.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros said she will be waiting for the IRR and will be watching intently to ensure that the prohibitions they put in place and the wins “we were able to secure during the plenary deliberations are not lost. “
“Pension funds are absolutely prohibited from investing in Maharlika, whether mandatorily or voluntarily, whether seed fund or subsequent investment. The law is clear,” she added.