THE NEW CHARTER of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) is expected to be approved by the House of Representatives Banks and Financial Intermediaries Committee early next year, its chairman said on Monday.
Manila Rep. Irwin C. Tieng, who heads the House banks committee, said LANDBANK’s charter could be approved at the committee level as early as January.
“I don’t think we can release it by December… but we are allowed to have committee hearings during the breaks. So, even if we don’t have a session, we can request special approval from Congress to hold a hearing,” Mr. Tieng told BusinessWorld.
Bills seeking to amend LANDBANK’s charter are pending at the House and Senate banks committees. The proposals seek to increase the state-run bank’s capitalization to P1 trillion from the current P200 billion.
Mr. Tieng’s proposal states that P200 billion or 20% of LANDBANK’s capital stock shall be subscribed to by the National Government, while P163.79 billion or at least 81.89% of the total subscription will be paid by the state.
A separate bill also being considered by the House banks committee includes a provision mandating LANDBANK to allocate at least 60% of its total loan portfolio to farmers and fisherfolk.
“We will find out if there are other things that we need to change in their charter with regards to granting loans and collecting loans,” Mr. Tieng added. “Maybe we have to add some things regarding the granting of loans, such as the maximum amount and who can grant up to what amount, also the allowable period of loans. Those are the things we’re looking into.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio