Senator Imee Marcos statement on presidential veto of the Bulacan Airport City Special Economic Zone and Freeport Act (BACSEZFA)

“Trabaho lang, walang personalan at wala ring kapatiran.  We recognize and uphold the President's prerogative to veto any bill, but are deeply disappointed the Bulacan ecozone has been cancelled.

In truth, this is unfinished business from Secretary Dominguez's tenure, during which all new ecozones were vetoed from 2016 until today. The reasons cited in the veto message were amply discussed during numerous hearings involving the stakeholders, then debated at length during plenary - resulting in a rare, unanimous Senate vote.

It was our hope to generate much-needed jobs in Bulacan and the Central Luzon countryside, enthused by the prospect of the first microchip burning plant in the Philippines to supply Samsung, Apple, etc. and a potential of USD200 billion in annual exports, on top of the PHP740 billion to be invested in the construction alone of the new airport!

In view of this development, and my fervent desire to support my brother's new administration, I urge the new economic team to stake a clear policy on the creation of new ecozones, which are not prohibited under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law. Perhaps the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) should be convened at the earliest opportunity to provide such guidance.

It is my hope that the veto does not have a chilling effect on the potential local and foreign investors, whom we need now more than ever, as our economy struggles to recover from the pandemic.”