Friday, July 3, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES [ BusinessWorld Online ]
A BILL seeking to form a single agency to regulate the construction industry has been filed in the House of Representatives.
House Bill (HB) 6484, titled the "Philippine Construction Industry Competitiveness Act of 2009", authored by Camarines Sur Rep. Diosdado M. Arroyo (1st district) seeks to establish a new entity, called the Philippine Construction Industry Development Authority (Philcida), that will replace existing bodies now regulating the industry — the Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines (CIAP), Philippine Overseas Construction Board (POCB), Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB), Philippine Domestic Construction Board (PDCB) and Construction Manpower Development Foundation (CMDF).
The Construction Industry Arbitration Commission (CIAC), however, will continue to exist as an independent body and will be attached to Philcida.
Overall planning
"Despite its potentials, the industry has failed to sustain its growth, parallel with the growth of the population. What is needed, as proposed in this bill, is for an agency to be created to be able to strategize how to position the industry given the reality of regional and global integration," Mr. Arroyo said in a telephone interview.
Among others, the measure provides that all government construction projects, regardless of funding source, will be subject to Philcida’s performance evaluation system.
The bill has been pending in the House committee on government enterprises and privatization since June 3. The last regular session of the current Congress starts July 27.
Industry players were not immediately available for comment. — JFSV
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