Aquino to sign law regulating GOCC perks Monday

President Benigno Aquino III will sign into law Monday a measure seeking to regulate the perks of officials of government-owned and controlled corporations. The GOCC Governance Act of 2011 will finally curb the "abusive" perks given of GOCC officials in past administrations, Sen. Franklin Drilon said Sunday. "Ito ay isang pagbabago na gagawin natin para ang mga abuso sa GOCC ay hindi na maulit. At dito sa ilalim ng batas, hindi na pwede manikurista ang i-appoint sa Pag-IBIG, o hardinero i-appoint sa Rizal Park," Drilon, who authored the Senate component of the measure, said in an interview on dzBB radio. He was referring to then President Gloria Arroyo's appointing her own manicurist and gardener to key posts in Pag-IBIG and the Luneta Parks Administration. According to Drilon, the law will take effect July 1, once Aquino signs it into law. The law also aims to end some abusive practices such as those in the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System where members got as much as 36 months' bonus a year. Drilon said the act will create a Governance Commission for GOCCs that will review the performance of these firms. "Those abuses will no longer be allowed under the GOCC Governance Act," he said. — LBG, GMA News