Press Release
May 1, 2008

ANGARA CALLS FOR MORE 'INVESTMENT VEHICLES'
Underscores need for RE, focus & target spending

Senator Edgardo J. Angara speaking at a press conference with finance reporters said that the country needs "investment vehicles" to mobilize savings and thus, pump up the economy.

He said that right now, there are no venues to place savings and to make it grow.

Among these "financial instruments" are the Personal Equity and Retirement Act (PERA), and Credit Information System Act (CISA) which were approved by the Senate in December; and the Pre-need Code, which is pending for amendment in the Upper House.

According to the Senator, chairman of the Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies, these 3 bills will hopefully be approved by both Houses before the session ends in June.

PERA is a sustainable retirement fund for Filipino workers particularly the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW). It will supplement the SSS and GSIS, which according to a World Bank study would run out of reserves by 2011 and 2040, respectively.

He stressed that PERA will ensure a more dependable and stable pension that will ensure financial security during retirement. He added that in two decades or less, PERA will be as big as SSS and GSIS.

CISA, on the other hand, will make credit more available, especially to small yet responsible borrowers. It will reduce the cost of gathering credit information, lessen the risk of lending money, and hence reduce interest rates on loans.

Another savings mechanism is the Pre-need Code which will protect the planholders and at the same time keep the pre-need industry viable.

According to the Senator if we pass these three bills along with other bills pending at the Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies, "we will be more competitive and we will have savings to fund our development projects."

Other pending bills at the committee are the Lending Companies Act, Corporate Recovery Act, Collective Investment Schemes Law (CISL), and the Credit Information System Act.

Asked about inflation, Angara said "inflation has no way to go but up because of simultaneous increase in food and fuel prices."

"That is why I am pushing for the passage of the Renewable Energy Act," he said. "RE is a response to the perennial problems in the power industry, with electricity tariffs that are among the highest in Asia," he explained.

Philippines exhibits a vast, well-mapped potential for RE. These RE include biomass, solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower and ocean energy. However, the country still depends greatly on imported energy and fuel products, constituting 72% of our energy demands.

On addressing rising food prices, Angara has been very vocal on his proposals to revamp the National Food Authority and channel the country's limited resources to planting on the existing irrigated lands, investment in post-harvest facilities, use of certified seeds, credit and research and development.

The strategy according to Angara is "focus and target spending."

"We must not scatter our limited resources and we need to start now."

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