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By Elijah Felice Rosales, August 30 2018; Business Mirror

https://businessmirror.com.ph/no-delay-in-crafting-of-irr-of-ease-of-business-law-says-dtis-lopez/

Image Credit to Department of Industry

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez on Thursday clarified there is no delay in the crafting of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the ease of doing business (EODB) law.

In a text message to reporters, Lopez argued his agency is on track and on time to complete the IRR of Republic Act 11032, dubbed the EODB and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act, before the October 22 deadline. His statement was in response to the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission’s (PACC) call to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to expedite the IRR.

“The IRR has been drafted and [the] deadline is October 22. It is not delayed,” he explained. “It is now being presented to various stakeholders from government agencies and private-sector institutions for comments.”

In a news statement, the PACC told the DTI that businessmen themselves are disappointed the IRR for the law has yet to be issued. The deadline for the IRR, however, is still on October 22, as stated by Trade Undersecretary Rowel S. Barba.

“Some businessmen had expressed dismay over the DTI’s delay in the issuance of the IRR, hence, the commission’s appeal for the agency not to incur more delay. While we understand that the DTI needs to conduct consultations and address some complexity in the law, time is of the essence here,” the PACC pointed out.

“We need not tell our fellow workers in the government that delays in the processing of permits and other official documents create opportunities for corruption,” it added.

The EODB law is expected to boost the country’s global standing in terms of doing business. It mandates government agencies to complete simple transactions within three working days; complex transactions seven working days; and highly technical transactions 20 working days.

The law is also banked on to improve the country’s ranking in the World Bank’s annual Doing Business report. In the 2018 cycle, the Philippines fell to 113th from 99th among 190 economies covered by the study.