Manila - The House of Representatives' Committee on Justice has approved a measure aimed at strengthening the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC). This step includes upgrading existing positions and creating new ones within the OGCC. The bill, authored by Parañaque City Rep. Edwin Olivarez, seeks to enhance the agency's capacity to address the evolving legal needs of government corporations, especially those without internal legal departments.
According to Philippines News Agency, During the hearing, chaired by Negros Occidental Rep. Juliet Marie de Leon Ferrer, the committee approved the unnumbered substitute bill amalgamating House Bills 6493, 6502, 8996, 9333, and 9385. Olivarez emphasized the increasing complexity and volume of work faced by the OGCC due to the expansion of government corporations' activities. He highlighted the OGCC's critical role in nation-building through legal support to its client corporations. OGCC Government Corporate Counsel Rogelio Quevedo noted that the measure addresses President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s concerns from July 2022, when a similar bill was vetoed due to issues with proposed salary increases for OGCC lawyers. Quevedo explained that the current bill focuses on the need for more lawyers at the OGCC, a requirement that has not been addressed since the 1980s.
The panel also approved in principle House Bill 9194, known as the "Digital Prison Record System Act." The bill, authored by several representatives, aims to digitize the records of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) to streamline the judicial process and improve transparency and management in detention and correctional facilities.