President Benigno Aquino III was counting on Congress to pass a bill that would modernize the country’s weather forecasting service, the Palace said Friday.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte told reporters that the President had certified the bill to upgrade the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration urgent. That meant it could bypass a requirement that bills are read on first, second, and third reading on separate days.
“This is something that we sorely need and we need funds for that. As you know, we are putting in rain gauges in different locations to help us determine the level of water in certain places,” Valte said in a Sun Star Online report, adding the program would have included the installation of more Doppler radars.
The 15th Congress, which has adjourned its third regular session, failed to pass the bill in time. It will be taken up by the 16th Congress, which convenes in July.
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Photo: NASA image of the Philippine Area of Responsibility
