Several business groups and foreign chambers pushed anew for the passage of three investment reform bills which are seen to spur economic recovery amid the pandemic.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, over 40 private sector groups called on Congress to pass the following pending bills: amendments to Public Service Act (PSA), the Retail Trade Act (RTA) and the Foreign Investment Act (FIA).
“Foreign investors and foreign governments have been following the progress of these reforms closely to determine whether the Philippine economy will be more open to investors or maintain its protectionist reputation,” they said.
The said measures, which have been tagged as urgent previously, are seen to ease the restrictions on foreign direct investments (FDI), the groups said.
This will then lead to more investments, job opportunities and competition, in addition to diversifying the economy and improving the services offered, they added.
“While FDI rules are not the sole reason the Philippines has fallen behind Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, our economy is less likely to catch up unless we open up,” the joint statement read.
The House passed the said bills in the last two years, the groups noted, adding that the final provisions for RTA amendments will be finalized by a bicameral conference committee soon. The amendments to PSA and FIA are currently pending for approval in the Senate.
The business groups, meanwhile, rejected the expansion of the 60-40 foreign restriction ownership in other sectors, which are not public utility. The senators earlier proposed to apply the same rule to common carriers, airports, dams, roads and railroads, seaports and telecommunications.
According to PSA, the public utilities include electricity distribution and transmission, water distribution and sewerage pipeline systems.
“[We] call on the Senate to decline all amendments to the PSA that will apply the 60-40 rule to any public service not classified as public utility defined in the bill. We agree that we need 21st century laws, that we need to open our public services to more competition in the interest of consumers, and to protect our national security through Executive and Congressional oversight,” they added.
Among the signatories include American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Bankers Association of the Philippines, Makati Business Club, Fintech Alliance Philippines, Philippine Life Insurance Association and Women’s Business Council Philippines.