AWAITING SIGNATURE | Congress sends controversial anti-terror bill to Office of the President for approval

June 9, 2020 , 04:03 PM

(June 9, 2020) – The highly contentious anti-terror bill, which critics say may spur human rights abuses from state forces, is just signature away from being enacted into law after the legislature officially transmitted the measure to the president’s office.

Senate leader Vicente Sotto III told reporters he is confident the popular leader will not veto the legislation after it angered the public due to its draconian provisions, which violate the constitution’s bill of rights.

Several lawmakers from the lower house have opted to withdraw their votes in approval of the bill, while some sought to clarify that they only wanted to abstain.

The final vote stood at 168 in affirmative, 36 against and 29 abstentions in the lower house. In the Senate, only two voted against the bill when it was passed in February before the lockdown.

Sotto on Tuesday chided those who had wanted to to delay the passage of the measure. “They should not want to do that,” he said. “They would not want me to do that to any of their bills, do they?”

Opposition senator Francis Pangilinan, speaking to One News’ “Agenda,” had conceded that the legislature has no more means for a remedy, such as a recall in vote.

He said the ball is now in the hands of the Supreme Court to decide on the constitutionality of the bill, which lawyers have warned that some provisions run counter to the country’s charter.

“Yung inciting to terrorism, in other words, your writings, speeches, you can be held, accused of, convicted in inciting to terrorism, ‘yan free speech na involved ‘yan,” he said.

Over the weekend, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said they will conduct their own review of the proposed measure.

Guevarra told reporters they are expecting the Office of the President to request for a review of the legislation before the president signs it into law or veto parts of the law.

“We shall focus on issues of constitutionality,” he said. “Our deadline will be set by the Office of the President, but I believe that 15 days will be good enough.”

Duterte has a month or 30 days to decide on whether to approve or veto the bill, after which, it lapses into law if no action is taken.

Human rights advocates have protested the bill’s passage, as it allows for the warrantless arrest of suspected terrorists for a maximum of 24 days.

It also paves the way for a wider scope of wiretapping operations, as well as the creation of an anti-terrorism council made up of Cabinet officials who are all unelected. (Christian de Lano Deiparine/MM)

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