Senate approves nine bills before adjournment

True to its promise that the Senate will be a multi-tasking Senate and will pass legislative measures while conducting investigations, Senate President Manny Villar announced that the Upper Chamber passed on second reading today four more bills, for a total of nine bills passed before going to a four-week break.

*Amendments to the Magna Carta of Small and Medium Enterprises, which seeks to provide development assistance to micro, small and medium scale enterprises

*Bill providing stiffer penalties to cellphone theft (six to 20 years imprisonment and maximum penalty if it results in death)

*Bill on environmental awareness, which creates the Office of Environmental Education to popularize environmental concerns and encourage initiative to environmental protection

*Bill promoting breastfeeding especially among working mothers

The Senate earlier passed on second reading five bills, namely, bill on cheaper medicines, bill providing more retirement benefits to judges and justices, bill providing rules and regulations in the presentation of suspects to media and public, bill extending the life of the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund and the bill providing protection to househelpers.