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Emergency powers for Duterte possible by December: Poe

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ABS-CBN News

<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ldm0f7dcqCc" width="420"></iframe></figure>The Senate may be able to pass the measure granting President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to solve the metro&#x27;s traffic by December, a senator said on Thursday.A day after their hearing with transport officials, Senate Public Services Committee Chair Grace Poe affirmed that &quot;the senate shares in the desire of the president to solve the traffic problem.&quot;&quot;The bottleneck won’t be in the Senate because we will do our work, we will conduct as many hearings as frequently as possible, but it’s August now, so we’re looking at hopefully before we adjourn in December,” she said.However, she said that the Transportation Department needs to give them a reasonably detailed plan of the extent of the powers, as Poe said the Senate &quot;will give them enough elbow room,&quot; but will not &quot;give them a blank check.&quot;&quot;They haven’t even identified the specific roads, how many kilometers of train. They have to be able to give us all of these specifics before we can actually deliberate on the extent of the emergency powers,&quot; said Poe.Nevertheless, she laid out some restrictions already.READ: <a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/business/08/10/16/transparency-on-emergency-powers-non-negotiable-says-poe">Transparency on emergency powers &#x27;non-negotiable,&#x27; says Poe</a>&quot;Number 1, it has to be FOI-compliant, number 2, it has to be fiscally responsible because we don’t want to shortchange our taxpayers. Of course, we would have to be paying for this, but we don’t want generations to come to be saddled with the debt of this particular undertaking.Poe would also want a congressional oversight committee with representatives from both houses to ensure there will be no abuses.She noted, three years of emergency powers should be enough to solve Metro Manila&#x27;s traffic woes, and the committee will have the power to withdraw such powers if and when the restrictions are not met.&quot;We are supportive, but we are not abdicating our role in also checking on the executive. It’s really important. We have to tread the fine line between supportive and being permissive and being cautious and being an obstructionist,&quot; she said.While emergency powers will speed up procurement of government projects, as Transport Secretary Arthur Tugade eyes ‘single source procurement’ or direct procurement, Poe believes government-guaranteed contracts are out of the question.&quot;I think the government has enough money now. I think the interest rates are lower now for government even to borrow, and I think there are more investors now in our country, so I think we don’t really need those sovereign guarantees or anything that might tie us up for decades to come,&quot; she said.

The Senate may be able to pass the measure granting President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to solve the metro's traffic by December, a senator said on Thursday.

The Senate may be able to pass the measure granting President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to solve the metro's traffic by December, a senator said on Thursday.