Senator Win Gatchalian raised the alarm as the COVID-19 crisis has not only affected the people but the country’s food security as well, given the real situation on the ground.

The government needs to fast track the implementation of the national ID system for a quicker health and calamity response in the future to prevent a repeat of the mistakes committed in tracing persons suspected with COVID-19 infections, according to Senator Win Gatchalian.

Senator Win Gatchalian is urging the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and power generating companies (GenCos) to relax the provisions in the Power Supply Agreements (PSAs) so that consumers won’t have to pay for unused electricity since there has been a decrease in electricity demand during this time of enhanced community quarantine.

Senator Win Gatchalian said the government needs to ensure that there will be enough rice supply in the market, not only within the enhanced community quarantine period but for the rest of the year, to ensure price stability of the commodity.

Senator Win Gatchalian echoes reminders for private lending institutions accredited under the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Automatic Payroll Deduction System (APDS) to comply on not imposing penalties for late payments as the country combats the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Senator Win Gatchalian called on the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to be more liberal in applying certain rules on fringe benefit tax for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine.

As the country sees the increasing number of Filipinos contracting the deadly coronavirus, Senator Win Gatchalian has urged all Local Government Units (LGUs) to set up makeshift hospitals and isolation tents where patients with mild symptoms can be isolated and mitigate the risk of spreading the virus.

With the enhanced community quarantine expected to go beyond April, Senator Win Gatchalian is calling on the government to extend the price freeze on Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) which households commonly use for their day-to-day needs.

As the country races against time to contain the spread of the deadly virus, Senator Win Gatchalian urges the national government to relax the requirements on COVID-19 related transactions to expedite the delivery of relief and services to the public.