PFM's statement on funds for Constitutional Convention

Media

Part of The Bicol Star

Title: PFM's statement on funds for Constitutional Convention
Language: English
Year: 1970
Rights
Fulltext: Page B THE BICOL STAR August-29, 1970 Suggested changes in the ... tations, or exportations, shall publish any 9ueh issue, grant, import, or export, whenever made to, or by, a public officer, or any relative of such public officer, within the third degree of affinity or consanguinity. All banks shall make available for publicscrutiny for ten years, all records of all banking transactions of a public officer, his spouse and children. Sec. 6. A public officer, who delivers to the state proceeds of a bribe and helps the state prosecute the corruptor for the crime of' corruption of a public officer, shall be exempt from, criminal liability, and the corruptor who helps the state convict a public officer for bribery shall likewise be exempt. In case both parties simultaneously file cases against each other, the court shall determine who is less guilty, acquit him and convict the other. Sec. 7. All proceeds of graft including their substitutes shall be forfeited to the state, and shall be reachable for forfeiture within a period of 20 years even if already in the hands of heirs. Sec. 8. Being a public officer shall be considered an aggravating circumstance in the commission of any crime, felony or violation of an ordinance. Sec. .9. Salaries and wages received by public officers directly from the government shall be free from income tax although said public officer shall, in proper cases, file tax returns. , Sec. 10. Children of public officers are entitled to free education up to the college level, and may enter the private schools where either parent had studied, or in any case ariy public school, and these schools shall grant the privilege of free tuition and books subject only to the child maintaining the academic and behavioral standards of the school. Of course the foregoing provisions are harsh. However, prevailing conditions dictate the same. There is a law at present that requires the filing of statement of assets and liabilities, but these statements are never scrutinized. There are many laws on the confidential nature of many documents, and these are resorted to by public officers to avoid discovery of anomalies. By making these statements of assets and liabilities open for scrutiny by the public, the public officer will be more careful in making those statements accurate, and more so because an auditor from the private sector will certainly conduct an audit of the statement. The present Constitution prohibits only the members of Congress from accepting any other position in the government, and there are some regulations in the Civil Service which prohibit some Civil Service employees from engaging in private practice. Only in the case of the Chairman and members of the Comelec does the Constitution specifically set forth prohibitions for engaging in practice of profession or engaging in business. Because of these very lenient prohibitions, we have government officials, especially the elective ones, engaged in private business or practice of their professions. It should be remembered thats there is no private business or profession which is not subject to regulation by law. Invariably, the business or profession is rapidly enhanced pecuniarily when laws regulatory thereof, are evaded of their full impact minimized. In this conflict of interests, if is the good of the community that usually suffers. Besides, especially in the case of most of our elective officials,, we see them discharging their functions as a government official at the same time that they are actively engaging in private business. Again here, there is a conflict as to the time the public officer has either to dedicate to the service of the community, or to his own business interests, and in the- same manner, the former suffers in favor of the latter. It is well known that people are interested in acquiring public oflice simply as a means to further their own personal interests. And this is the reason why many spend fabulous sums even to the extent of borrowing, to get either elected or appointed to public office, fully convinced that whatever is thus spent will be more than compensated by the pecuniary returns, not from the office but from the exercise thereof. By Sec. 3 above, one fertile source for graft, as well as conflict of interests is eliminated or at least greatly minimized. The banking laws which protect from discovery graft committed by public officers, should also be changed by making the records of all banking transactions of public officers open to citizens who may care to scrutinize them. If the public officer has nothing to hide, then he has nothing to fear, and the objective of this facility for discovery is precisely to drive fear into the public officer not to commit graft. And by providing that proceeds from graft may be reached by forfeiture to the state even when already inherited} should further make the public officer realize that not even his children, the innocent,. will benefit from his graft. The biggest stumbling block in prosecuting and convicting bribery at present, under the Revised Penal Code, is the fact that both parties, the recipient and the giver of the bribe, are to be convicted hence once is able to hold a Damocle’s sword on the other’s head, and consequently both keep quiet. It is also commonplace in the country today that government officials and employees think they are above the law even in the matter of traffic ordinances. By making their position an aggravating circumstance, should awaken them to the fact that they are the first ones who should comply with the laws. Despite the harshness of the foregoing provisions, there should be no fear that people will not accept positions in the government. In the first place, the provision in the present Constitution that compels citizens to render either military or civil service should be clarified and reinforced, and in the second place you have the two pecuniary inducements in Section 9 and 10 above. In the foregoing proposals there is mentioned a new office, the Commissioner for Integrity. As has been said in this paper, there is need to drive the fear of the law into the public officer. Such need cannot be achieved if there is no office who ctoes nothing but concentrate on driving this fear into the public officer. Hence the proposal to create this constitutional office. Art. — Commissioner on Integrity “Sec. 1. There shall be a Commissioner on Integrity who shall be elected directly by qualified voters nationwide, is disqualified for reelection, and who shall hold office for ten years, unless sooner removed as provided herein. The first Commissioner shall be elected in the first election held after the effectivity of this Constitution, and the succeeding ones during regular elections if they coincide with the ending of the term of the predecessor, otherwise a special election shall be held for this purpose. “Sec. 2. The Commissioner of Integrity shall be a natural born citizen, 35 years old or over at the time of assumption of office. No person may file a certificate of his own candidacy for Commissioner on Integrity. A certificate containing the signature of at least 500 qualified voters shall be accepted by the Commission on Elections as a certificate of candidacy of the individual endorsed therein, if he has the qualifications mentioned in' this Section. The Commission on Elections shall publish or cause to be published all over the country 1he biodata and pictures of all persons whose certificates of candidacy have thus been filed. Sec. 3. A Commissioner on Integrity may, during his term of office be removed by a Recall carrying the signature of at least 100,000 qualified electors and filed with the Supreme Court, who shall verify as far as reasonable, the genuiness and spontaniety of the signatures. Upon such determination, the Supreme Court shall certify to the Commission on Elections that the Office of the Commissioner on Integrity is vacant, and within 90 days after such Certification, the Commission on Elections shall hold an election for a new Commissioner on Integrity. Sec. 4. The Commissioner on Integrity shall receive an annual remuneration of P100.000 and the state shall furnish him with an official residence. Sec. 5. Duties and Powers of the Commissioner on Integrity: (1) He shall be in charge of enforcing all laws relative to the conduct of public officers and the maintaining of integrity in government. (2) Any public officer, when so required by the Commissioner, shall act as his deputy for the purpose of discovering or prosecuting graft and corruption in government. Any practising lawyer Op certified public accountant may likewise be deputized either for a fee or de oficio as a civic duty. (3) For the first year Congress shall provvide a budget of ?2 Million for the office of the Commissioner on Integrity, and thereafter the Commisisoner shall present his own budget to the Congress which, unless there is an increase of more than 10% over the preceding year’s budget, may not be reduced. (4) He may issue subpoenas, subpoena duces tecum, and search warrants which may be enforced by any officer or agency of the government so requested by the Commissioner. (5) The Commissioner or his deputy shall have the powers to initiate and prosecute* criminal as well as civil actions relative to the conduct or integrity of public officers; (6) He shall publish printed annuat report to the people of his activities, furnishing copies thereof to any citizen , who may request for the same. All treasurers of provinces, .cities and municipalities shall always keep copies of this report available for scrutiny of any citizen who may so desire.” The foregoing provisions seek: (a) To make the Commissioner of Integrity directly bounden only to the people, and to no public officer whatever. He is elected and removable by, and reports directly to the people. (b) To give the Commisioner pecuniary,, returns more than sufficient for his material needs, which, added to the tax free and free scjipofiiig privileges of his children, should free himcompletely from the worries of day to day family needs and sustenance, and convince him to dedicate his entire self to the task of clearing out graft and corruption in our government. (c) To give him all the powers and the funds needed, to organize and get good men, to successfully carry out the functions of his office. As a matter of fact this almost nominal initial budget is cheap if the objectives of the office is attained. (Next part will be on Peace and,Order)PFM’s Statement on Funds ior Constitutional Convention President Marcos, answering queries"-' from newsmen during an informal interview, made the following statement concerning the funds for the forthcoming constitutional convention. “ ... on the matter of funding . • • what'seems to be bothering everyone is (whether) we should release the funds immediately. The truth of the matter is that there is a provision in the budget for about ?14 million. . . .but p14 million wilj, not be enough ■ • • ■ and they are asking for more ytfj'gn this. There is a provision of law - - - ■ but wh'ete is the cash? “Where will the funds come from? If necessary| I’ll save on my department, if Congress says they" cannot pass any more measures. . . . and Tip not talking about additional tax measures. I’m talking about increased efficiency in tax collection - like removing the escape clauses (in. the) tarjff and customs code, the payment by corporations of income tax not twice a year but every quarter . . . . so the low ebb of our tax collection during Sepfeipr her, October and November will level off into -an even collection. qiii'T to oil “There are other measures to generate funds • • amend some of the subsidies, like'the subsidy in gold and possibly subsidy for agricultural products.In addition is the following statement' from Budget Commissioner Faustino Sy-Changco:' : Concerning the availability of funds for thd Fl 7 million needed for the holding of the election of the delegates to the Constitutiohal Converitidii ajid the P12 million needed for the convention itself, or a total of F29 million, the Budget Office -finds ■ difficulty in allocating cash for the purpose. ■ Congress has approved S. No. 77 and H.' No. 1347, appropriating F17 million for the election of delegates to the Constitutional Con vent ion and PJ.2 million for the holding of the Convention, or a total of ?29 million. The bill is now pending signalure of . the President. But while such an appropriation exists, - cash requirements exceed available cash, and a new cash budget will have to provide for an additional appropriation of P147,529,118, which is rendered , as follows: 1. GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS, REP ACT’. No. 6130 .................................. ?68,082,528 1. For implementation of the increase over the program ■ previously made for the • • • Congress and the Judiciary • • 38,786,033 , 2. Bureau of Public Schools For salaries, maintenance . . and other operating expenses of the Division of the City of Manila ....................... 14,296,49^ (Continued on page 6) ,, The BICOL STAR August 29 , 19 SI D4RWIN VELOSO “N4-C0RNER” M4N GUIRAR4Y Knights of Rizal to Hold Installation of New Members, Elevation to Higher Degrees of Old Members September 11, 1970 Veloso nag dulag sacarcel provincial nadakop; yaon sa Hospital masakit The Order of the Knights of Rizal, Naga City Chapter in this City, will hold a regular meeting on September 11, 1970 and installation of new members and elevation to higher degrees of some of the old members. K R s from different chapters of the Bicol region are invited to attend the affair which will be held at the residence of Chapter Commander exJudge Perfecto R. Palacio (CFI, retired) at Pacol, Naga City. It is hoped that all members of the chapter will be present and those invited from other chapters because on this day in the afternoon is also scheduled the traditional “Translation” of the image of the Virgin of Penafrancia, the Patroness of the Bicolanos, from the Penafrancia Shrine to the Metropolitan Cathedral, marking the beginning of the 9-day festivities of Penafrancia annual religious fiesta, the biggest in Bicolandia. The picture above shows the taking-oath of office by the new officers of the Naga City Chapter recently held at the VIP Canteen of the PNB, here. Those in the picture are irom left to right: Domingo A Escalante, P.R.O.; ex-Chapter Commander Dr. Melchor Villanueva, trustee; r 'TRclVet „yia^R • SHFE • ECONOMICAL EFFICIENT TEL 21 00-11 SCHEDULE OF PNR TRAIN (SOUTHERN LINES) SOUTHERN TRAINS: TRAIN: DEPAR'TURE DESTINATION ARRIVAL 511 Manila 6:05 a.m. Camalig 7:35 p.m. 515 Manila 6:30 p.m. Camalig 8:36 a.m. 503 Manila 7:20 p.m. Naga 3:14 p.m. 517 (T-Ma-1) ” (Mayon Ltd) 5:45 p.m. Camalig 6:20 a.m. 505 Manila 9:10 a.m. Naga 7:56 p.m. 535 Manila 4:00 pan. Legazpi 10:27 p.m. NORTHBOUND TRAINS: 512 Legazpi 7:00 a.m. Manila 9:04 p.m. 516 Legazpi 6:00 p.m. Manila 8:50 a.m„ 504 Naga 10:50 a.m. Manila 6:28 a.m* 518 T-Lg-2 Leg. (Mayon Ltd.) 5:00 p.m. Manila 6:43 a.m. 506 Naga 4:40 a.m. Manila 3:38 p-m. 536 Legazpi 4:00a.m. Naga 8:33 a.m. Irene© Reyes, Jr., pursuivant; ex-Judge Perfecto R. Palacio, Chapter Commander; Dr. Joaquin I. Perez, Deputy Chapter commander; Dr. Protacio G. Tolentino, exchapter commander, trustee; ex-Judge Jose Surtida, ex-chapter commander, trustee; Nare Lalwani, auditor: Dr. E. Palaroan, archivist; Isidro Atienza, (partly hidden), excheker, The person with back toward the camera is Dr. Manuel I. Abella, ex-regional commander, officiating the oath-taking of the chapter officers. Not in the picture is Atty. Juan Magdaraog, chancellor who was absent during the occasion. Senator Kalaw 1. Decentralization in education which simply ^eans the direct participation and involvement of the citizen in the formulation of plans and policies for the education of our children through the creation of local school boards; 2. The search for quality education to hack away at the barnacles of a colonial or transplanted system and to fashion out a curriculum that is responsive and relevant to the national economic goals and needs; 3. The development of an indigenous school system adopted to the social conditions and needs of the nation; 4. The introduction of new approaches to education financing since government effort at this is still grossly inadequate; and 5. The need to establish an Asian position for Philippine education that it may be able to meet its international commitments and for other humanitarian objectives. Education changes the individual, Kalaw said, “only where the teacher has taken upon himself the role of an agent of changes.” , Si Reynaldo? Darwin Veloso, 35 anos an edad, detenido sa Carcel Provincial digdi sa Naga huli can saiyang pagbadil asin nagadan idtong si Hermy Rosero Odiamar, can salakaton na Veloso an harong na ex Vice Gobernador Filemon Odiamar sa Pacol, Naga City can bangi can Mayo 21, 1970, nagdulag sa carcel can Miercoles Agosto 26 namaagahon si bangi, caiba an duang amigo niang preso si Felicisimo Campillo asin Joaquin Salvino, nadakop sa barrio nin Tambo, Pamplona can Jueves na hapon na may alas cuatro y media si hapon, nacatago sa irarom nin gaho (talahib) si Veloso may toiong tama nin badil sa tabay asin sa daghan. Si Veloso yaon gnonian sa hospital provincial can C.S. masakit an camugtacan. An sabi cincuenta por ciento an saiyang palad na mabuhay, dahel Sa ta. ma saiya nin bala asin dugo na nagbolos saiya. Can Miercoles iyo si aldao na babasahan siya kan silot can juzgado, alagad dai na siya ikinasakat sa sala ni Jues Rafael de la Cruz ta nagdulag. Ipinaapod ni juez si Warden, alagad mayo siya caya si Sgt. Jose Esmeralda iyong nagtao nin report ki juez can pacadulag ni PFM's Statement (From page B) 3. Armed Forces of the Philippines . . . .P15,000,000 II. SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS . . P65,143,000 1. For implementation of the Minimum Wage Law, Rep. Act No. 6129 .. . .P30,000,000 2. For (1,000 additional extension classes . . .P27,000,000 3. For implementation of the Teves Law, Rep. Act No. 4657 . . . P8,145,000 III. FIXED EXPENDITURES 1. Municipal Courts - For retiremeut gratuities of municipal judges, Rep. Act No. 5095 . . . Pl,000,000. 2. Public Service Commission For retirement gratuity of ExCommissioner Enrique Medina . . . P95.000. IV. CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS .... P13,206,590 1. Bureau of Treausury - For increases in annual amortization to the capital stock of the ADB due to adoption of floating rate .... P8,145,000. 2. Bureau of Public Schools - For the support of intermediate classes in the City of Manila, Rep. Act No. 4092 (additional) .... P5,061,590 Total additional requirements for Y.V. 1971 . . . P147,529,118 Because of this, the appropriation of P29 million for the election of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention and the holding of the convention itself will have to come from the revenue to be generated from those additional sources embodied in those measures awaiting action by Congress. Darwin. TJos nagorden si De la Cruz sa PC, sa NBI asin sa polis sa Naga na tawan nin seguridad an familia na Odiamar ta tibaad magvengar si Darwin na garadanon sinda. Si Darwin asin duang caiba nagluas sa labot na ginibo nia sa sogod can paril sa may catre na pigtorogan ni Darwin. Sa balyo can saiyang cuarto yaon man nacaestar an cadacul na presos alagad pigpadocotan nin mga papel an lanob can cuarto ni Darwin gnaning dai makita kan ibang tao. Can Martes na bangi nagcaigua nin cadikit na caorcgmahan an preso sa pagtao nin despedida ki Darwin ta sesentenciahan na pagcaaga. Nagpara caranta an mga preso sagkod matagna si bangi, alagad , pagcatapus asin tororog naisinda, si Darw.n asin si| duang caiba iyo na si pagdulag. 5^. < Pagluas sa carcel nagdagos sinda sa may Camaligan nagdakit sa salog dagos sa barriong Tarosanan lagbas sa tramo' can tren asin nagsosog sa tramo lunad sa nakuang skate sagkod Pamplona. Sa Pamplona nadakop sinda can polis Sinontok ni Darwin si polls asin nacadulag dagos sa barrio Tambo, pero tinamaan sia nin badil can polis. Nadacop siya sa Tambo sa irarom nin mta gaho, maluya na huli sa tama saiya nin bala. Ipighatod si Darwin sa Naga can auto can "Operations Pakikiday” can oficina can gobernador provincial na yaon duman sa Pamplona ta nagtatao nin ayuda sa mga tao. Si duang caiba ni Darwin dai nacadulag sa Pamplona caya dinara tolos digdi sa Naga can jueves na aga. Youth Leaders... (Cont. from page 6) -CALLEJA, CSI College SCO President and Coordinator. MOVEMENT ON DECENCY COPY FURNISHED: Archbishop Teopisto Alberto, Mayor Vicente P. Sibulo, Chief Elias Pama, The Naga Times, The Bicol Mail, The Bicol Star, The Bicol Newsday, The Action News, The Caceres Herald, Philippine Free Press, Board of Censors, Manila, CandidateR. Andaya... teachers year round congressional sessions unicameral legislature. I pledge here and now that if given the mandate, I shall strive to add new lustre to the glory and prestige the good people of the First District of Camarines Sur. Atty. Rolando B. Andaya Candidate for CC Delegate First District, Camarines Sur 444444 x>444< 44444. >44444 KEEP OUR CITY CLEAN 444444 444444.44444 >44444