Press Release
January 21, 2014

Transcript of Interview of Senate President Franklin M. Drilon

SP Drilon: We must examine. This is a new concept - disaster risk insurance. Right now, the first thing we have to do is (1) to enforce compliance with the policy that all government buildings must be insured with GSIS; (2) losses in agriculture sector must be adequately covered by the Philippine Crop Insurance Company (PCIC). I doubt it very much whether that is being fully implemented. We go back to the basic: we must strengthen our disaster risk management by complying with the GSIS law requiring all public buildings to be insured and augment and strengthen our PCIC by providing enough funds so that it can respond to the losses in our agriculture sector dahil ang ating mga magsasaka ang pangunahing nahihirapan kapag may mga sakuna. Right now, only 10% of our agriculture sectors are insured with the PCIC. Ang kailangan nating gawin na hihilingin ko sa Committee on Agriculture ay tingnan kung bakit hindi adequate ang ating disaster risk coverage insofar as the agriculture sector is concerned notwithstanding the fact that we have the PCIC.

Q: How about the insurance for LGUs?

SP Drilon: The LGUs are supposed to insure the municipal buildings and other buildings that are put up by the LGUs with the GSIS. May batas po iyan na nangangailangn i-insure ang lahat ng ng public structures, whether national or local, with GSIS.

Q: Sir, no need for a legislation?

SP Drilon: Yes. May batas na. We only have to address the implementation. Of course, disaster risk insurance can offer wider coverage. I am not yet prepared to endorse that concept because of the financial burden involved and other issues we must examine carefully.

Q: Is it worth considering?

SP Drilon: Yes, we can debate on it, for disaster risk insurance is a new concept. But what I am saying is before we can examine that concept, we can already move forward by enforcing the policies and the law on insuring all government buildings and agricultural sector against losses arising from natural disasters.

Q :Comment on the speech of Sen. Revilla

SP Drilon: We refer it to the Committee on Rules.

SP Drilon: Sinasabi ng Pangulo, hindi siya nakialam at may nabalitaan siyang sector na nangangampanya to judge the former chief justice to judge other than the evidence presented. For me it was to make sure that the decision is based on the evidence. Senator Revilla said he decided based on what he believed was right. That will serve as a confirmation that he only did what was right.

SP Drilon: I do not know the circumstances. There are claims by Sec. Roxas that Sen. Revilla discussed the cityhood of Bacoor; on the other hand, Sen. Revilla said he went to the President because of the impeachment.

Q: Ginamit raw ni PNoy ang influence niya to impeach Corona?

SP Drilon: Of course not, that is not correct. It is not true. Ang totoo ay sinasabi ni Presidente na kinausap niya dahil marami siyang nariring na may ibang sector na kumakausap sa mga senador upang magpasya hindi sahil doon sa ebidensya.

News Latest News Feed