With only six legislators disapproving the passage of House Bill 6608 creating the Maharlika Investment Fund (aka Maharlika Wealth Fund), the overwhelming number approving the measure sent a message to the people that their protests don’t count but the tyranny of numbers in the House did.
This same tyranny of numbers will be used by the executive branch and some House members to pressure the Senate into approving MIF despite the vehement objection from the citizenry who find the measure irrelevant and ill-timed amid economic crisis (soaring inflation, unemployment, rising utilities bills and low wages and food shortages apart from a pervasive pandemic).
The House did not even pretend to look independent but showed its subservience to the president, who upon certification of MIF bill as urgent, voted overwhelmingly for its passage a week before Christmas. (What could be the price for such obeisance?)
By railroading the passage last December 15 of House Bill 6608 creating MIF soon after its certification as urgent by President Marcos, the House showed that it is at the behest of the President: what the Chief Executive wants, he gets.
The House has passed to the Senate its heavily- revised bill amid mounting clamors against the measure by the people and even the business sector as regards timing and its vulnerability to corruption. The objections to the bill were borne more out of lack of public trust in the fund’s purpose, usage and managers/auditors.
Lawmakers voted 276 affirmative and 6 brave ones rejecting its passage.
Principal author, Speaker Martin G. Romualdez (first cousin of the president) said the amendments introduced to the measure, especially the inclusion of more safeguards against possible abuse and fraud, “is our way of addressing the concerns of our people.”
He said the bill, as finalized, would insulate the MIF from political influence (headed by Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, its foremost lobbyist, would unlikely be insulated).
As revised, funders would be the Land Bank (P50-B), Development Bank (P25-B), PAGCOR (10 percent of gross gaming revenues) and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (100 percent of dividends).
Because of vehement objection, the House had to remove as capital sources, the pension funds of SSS and GSIS. The initial fund was at P275 billion.
The bill creates the MIF Corp., with a board, chaired by Diokno, to manage the fund, with LB and DBP presidents as CEO, and with seven members to be nominated by MIF contributors commensurate to their contributions, and four independent directors.
The bill said in lieu of taxes and dividend remittance to the national government at least 25 percent of the net profits of the MIC shall be directly distributed in the form of poverty and subsistence subsidies to families falling below the poverty threshold as determined by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), beginning with the 18.1 percent of the population, or 19.99 million Filipinos living below the poverty threshold of about P12,030 per month for a family of 5, per the 2021 family income and expenditure survey of the PSA.
The number of independent directors on the board was increased from two to four to widen private sector representation. These directors should have no conflict of interest in relation to the fund. Operational expenses of the corporation shall not exceed 2 percent of the funds managed.
The MIF Corp. would have an advisory body with members: the secretary of the Department of Budget and Management, director general of the National Economic and Development Authority, and the National Treasurer.
The corporation would have an internal and external auditors aside from the Commission on Audit.
The proposed law mandates the National Treasurer, in consultation with the founding government financial institutions, to issue implementing rules and regulations.
The bill also provides the right to freedom of information of the public.