Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

THIRTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

55

HOUSE BILL

Introduced by : REP. RAUL V. DEL MAR

EXPLANATORY NOTE

In essence, social justice in a democracy is caring for the poor, a continuing and
sincere concer for the underprivileged, a genuine and serious effort to improve their
quality of life. This is what the attached bill, The Magna Carta for the Poor, is all about.

While there may be existing laws touching on the need of the poor, the jobless,
the homeless and the landless as part of an overall national strategy to alleviate poverty,
this proposed legislation puts in sharp focus by stating in unequivocal terms what is felt
to be the basic irreducible rights of the poor as essential requirements towards poverty
alleviation, rights without which it is pointless to talk about poverty reduction, These
rights are: the right to employment, the right to food, the right to shelter, the right to free
quality education and the right to free healthcare and medicine — the “minimum standards
of decency” which the poor can demand as a matter of right and which the government
must do as a matter of obligation.

More that a bill of rights of the poor, it declares that Government must now take
the side of the poor because the issue of poverty has now become a critical question of
survival; that Government intervention, given the present situation, is the only realistic
route to take to uplift the poor while long terms measures, strategies and solutions for
poverty reduction are being put in place, and that government must invest heavily in anti-
poverty programs for the economic empowerment of the poor.

The attached bill recognizes that, under the present economic environment, the
top priority should be the creation of jobs or creation of employment opportunities. ‘The
lack of employment appears to be the core of the problem of poverty. Jobs mean income
and income translates into access to food, shelter, land, education and healthcare services.
This means income spending which means payment and collection of taxes which in tur
means more services to the poor. The government, therefore, must create jobs, must
establish employment opportunities for the poor.


Likewise, the government must implement a system of subsidy to help the poor in
their food and housing requirements, and a system of free quality education and free
health services and medicine. Employment will not come immediately for all the poor
and the income may be grossly inadequate for those who may be employed. Hunger and
sickness should not incapacitate and disable the poor in the pursuit of their rights.

The value of education — not mere education but free quality educations even at
the college level is envisioned — in poverty alleviation cannot be denied. Simply put, an
educated poor would have better chances of surviving and enduring, even prevailing, in
the market of employment and business. As stressed somewhere, those left out of public
education programs are likely to be left out of economic opportunities, a misfortune that
will surely be inherited by the next generation. The government must treat this concept
of free quality education as a national investment, equipping the citizertry with tools for
the future, for a better future.

In the end, to make democracy work, the government must firstly work for the
poor, the greater majority of the people. We can only have strong democratic institutions
when such greater majority of the people are given the opportunities to participate in the .
benefits, growth and development of a democratic society. Only when the poor are
economically empowered will they be able to participate in the democratic process of
setting national goals that affect their daily lives.

In this light, approval of the bill is earnestly sought.

RAUL Y- MAR



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

THIRTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

55

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by : REP. RAUL V. DEL MAR

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR A MAGNA CARTA FOR THE POOR

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Magna Carta For The
Poor.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the declared policy of the State to uplift
the standard of living and quality of life of the poor and provide them with sustained
opportunities for growth and development. It is likewise the policy that the concept of
poverty alleviation is a government responsibility that primarily requires the creation and
expansion of employment opportunities geared towards providing decent and productive
employment to the poor.

To attain the foregoing policy:

(1) Government must invest heavily in anti-poverty programs to empower the
poor to enable them participate in the country’s growth and development;

(2) All government departments, agencies and instrumentalities must provide full
access to government services at all levels for the poor; and

(3) Government interventions must be done now to address the genuine concerns
of the poor - which are now concems for daily survival - while long term strategies and
solutions for the economic empowerment of the poor are being put in place.



SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. -

(a) “Poor” shall refer to natural persons whose income or combined household
income falls within the poverty threshold as defined by the National Economic
Development Authority and who at the same time are not owners of real property.

(b) “Hazardous or danger zones” - refers to areas which when occupied for
residential purposes actually poses a danger to the life and safety of the concerned
residents or of the general community.

(c) “Poor Organization” - refers to any recognized or accredited association as the
sole representative organization of the poor in the community.

SEC. 4. Basic rights of the Poor. - The poor shall have the following rights the
enjoyment of which is an essential requirement towards poverty alleviation; (1) The
right to employment; (2) The right to food; (3) The right [to free quality
education; (4) The right to shelter’ and (5) The right to free health services and
medicine.

The government shall provided the requirements, conditions and opportunities
for the full enjoyment of these rights of the poor as a matter of duty and obligation, and
which the poor can demand as a matter of right.

SEC. 5. The Right to Food and Food Assistance. - The Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) shall develop a program of free food to the
poor or a system of food assistance/subsidy to help the poor meet their minimum food
necessities.

The DSWD is hereby authorized to solicit donation, aids or grants, in cash or in
kind, from whatever source, to meet the demands of this basic right of the poor. The
donors under this provision shall be entitled to full deductibility of the value of the
donation for income tax purposes.

To help ensure the implementation of the free food for the poor program, all food
items and food products, including rice, corn, sugar and other prime commodities, seized
and forfeited with finality in favor of government for violations of customs laws shall be
automatically transferred to or turned over to the DSWD for its dispositions.

SEC. 6, The Right to Employment. - The Department of labor and
Employment (DOLE), in coordination with the labor or employment offices of local
government units, shall primarily be responsible for ensuring that the poor shall have
preferential access to employment openings in private enterprises and in government

programs and projects. For this purpose and to focus on the specific issue of creation of



employment for the poor, the DOLE shall establish an Office of Employment
Opportunities (OEO) within the department to carry out this responsibility. The
‘budgetary requirements of the OEO shall be included in the annual budget of this
department.

Government departments and agencies, including government-owned and
controlled corporations, are hereby authorized and mandated to earmark funds from
their budgetary outlays to immediately undertake viable projects {for employment
purposes. The government shall likewise allocated more funds ftom official development
assistance for projects and activities that will have greater impact on generation of
‘employment for the poor.

It shall be mandatory for all government infrastructure projects and/or :
government-funded contracts or government-assisted undertakings to utilize laborers
from poor organizations as may be necessary in areas where the projects or contracts are
to be implemented.

SEC. 7. The Right to Free Quality Education, - The right of the poor to free
elementary and secondary public education shall not be impaired. This right shall
include provisions for free school uniform and school transportation.

The right to education shall include access to quality education at the college
level. Keyed to the government goal of providing free college education to the poor,
college or graduate scholarships for the poor, including the study-now-pay/later-plans,
shall be expanded in State universities and colleges and local government educational
institutions keyed to the government goal of giving free quality college education.

It shall also included the right to free availment of vocational and/or technical
training and manpower skills development, for those who fail to qualify for formal or »
higher education, from appropriated government agencies.

The Department of Education Culture and Sports (DECS), in coordination with
government agencies and government educational institutions concerned, shall ensure the
full enjoyment of the poor’s right to education.

SEC. 8. The Right to Shelter. - The right of the poor to decent housing shall not
be abridged. The Government shall develop and implement an appropriate housing
scheme that will provide decent housing facilities to the poor with the least financial
burden through a system of subsidy or no-down payment acquisition schemes and long
term, interests-free loans.



In identified hazardous or danger zones or in geographic areas and
population groups where housing needs for the poor are urgent and greatest, the
Government, through the National Housing Authority and the local government
unit concemed, shall immediately construct and provide free housing facilities in
pre-determined development or resettlement sites. .

In all cases, the Government, in ensuring the exercise and enjoyment of
this right of the poor, shall put in place a system of simple requitement! and
procedures and expeditious processing and approval.

SEC. 9. The Right to Free Health Services and Medicine. - The
Department of Health, through its regional offices of national and provincials or »
local hospitals, shall develop and implement a system of free delivery of health
services and medicine to the poor. The availment of this right of the poor shall
be limited to the locality where they permanently reside.

Government medical and health insurance program under existing laws shall
increase, expand and liberalize their coverage so as to include free basic health
services and medicine to the poor.

SEC. 10. Other Rights of the Poor. - All other rights and benefits for the
Poor provided under existing laws shall remain in full force and| effect. Nothing
herein shall be construed in a manner that will diminish the enjoyment of such
rights by the poor who shall have the right to avail of the greater rights or
benefits offered by existing laws, including those granted under this Act.

SEC. 11. Funding Requirements. -To carry out the provisions of this Act,
the following amounts are appropriated as follows:

(1) The sum of Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) as initial operating
fund is hereby appropriated out of any available funds in the National Treasury.
‘The amount necessary in subsequent years to help implement this Act shall be
included in the annual appropriation of the NEDA.

(2) Twenty percent (20%) of the share of the national government in the
earnings of the PAGCOR.

(3) Twenty percent (20%) of the share of the national government in all
lotteries conducted by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

(4) Fifty percent (50%) of the share of the government in the proceeds

from sale or disposition of sequestered assets.



(5) Fifty percent (50% of the proceeds from the sale o disposition by
public auction of goods or articles forfeited in favor of the government by the

Bureau of Customs.
The share from the PAGCOR, the PCSO, the sale of sequestered assets '
and forfeited goods and article, as above-provided, shall be directly remitted to
the NEDA on a quarterly basis for its disposition in accordance with this Act.
SEC. 12. Rational Allocation Funds. - The National Economic and
Development Authority (NEDA) shall be principally responsible for the efficient and
rational allocation of available funding requirements as maybe needed by the different

government departments and agencies in implementing the rights of the poor.
‘ SEC. 13. Implementing Rules. - The NEDA, in coordination, with the my
a government departments and agencies concerned, shall promulgate rules and regulations:
: to carry out the provision of this Act within three (3) months from its|effectivity.' The
rules shall set priority target areas for the initial implementation of this |Act with the end

in view of ensuring the successful replication of the program nationwide.
SEC. 14. Compliance Report - The NEDA, in coordination with all
: government department and agencies concemed, shall, within, six (6) months from

: the effectivity of this Act and every six (6) months thereafter, submit a report to
Congress on the compliance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 15. Separability Clause. - If for any reason any section or provision

g of this Act is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other sections or provisions
a hereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect,

SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, t
a proclamations, rules and regulations or parts thereof, inconsistent herewith are

1 hereby repealed. :
SEC. 17. Effectivity Clause. - this Act shall take effect immediately upon its
publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,