Anti-trust law will enhance PHL preparations for ASEAN integration

The recent approval by Congress of the Philippine Competition Act will bolster the country's  preparedness for eventual ASEAN market integration, Senate President Franklin M. Drilon said today.

Drilon said the approval of this landmark measure "will greatly boost the nation’s preparations as Southeast Asian markets unite under the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by the year’s end."

“With the Philippine Competition Act one step away from being enacted into law, we are much closer to ensuring that our country is at par with our ASEAN neighbors in terms of preventing unfair trade behavior within our shores,” he pointed out.

The Senate President noted that the Philippines remains the only original nation-member of the ASEAN without a comprehensive anti-trust law in effect. A competition law, he stressed, is a commitment under the AEC Blueprint.

He emphasized that the long-standing absence of a competition law “has discouraged and stymied the flow of investments to the country, thus inhibiting our long-term economic development.”

Drilon commended the Senate Committee on Trade, Commerce and Entrepreneurship Chair Sen. Bam Aquino and the bicameral panel from both Houses of Congress “for all their hard work in crafting a landmark national competition policy.”  

"After nearly three decades of attempts by Congress to pass this law, finally, we will have a competition law in place which will protect businesses and consumers,” he said.

Drilon said that under the act, a Philippine Competition Commission will be established to enforce a national competition policy prohibiting anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position, and anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions.

The law will penalize enterprises guilty of engaging in unfair business practices with fines reaching up to P250 million, with amounts adjusted for inflation every five years. Offenders of the act may also face up to seven years in prison.

The Senate leader said the Philippine Competition Act will complement many of the economic reforms the government has been pursuing: “The Philippine Competition Act is just one of the many pro-economy reforms and policies which are being pushed to make the country more competitive and more compliant to international standards, thus maximizing our true economic potential.”
The Senate has already passed economic reform measures such as the amendments to the Cabotage Law and the Tax Incentives Transparency and Management Act (TIMTA).

Other proposed measures like the Rationalization of Fiscal Incentives, and the Customs and Tariff Modernization Act (CTMA) are part of the Senate's priority legislative agenda when it resumes its session next month.

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