About 10 government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) are being mulled for privatization pending the evaluation of their financial and economic status, among others.
In a briefing on Friday, Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG) Chairperson Alex L. Quiroz declined to give specifics, citing the need to protect the GOCCs’ status pending the results of the ongoing assessment.
“Different GOCCs have their own peculiarities,” Quiroz said.
The GCG has jurisdiction over 118 GOCCs, which excludes the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), local water districts, and research institutions.
The agency is mandated to safeguard the government’s rights and ensure that GOCCs’ operations remain transparent and responsive to the government’s bid to provide services to the public.
To date, only the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has openly discussed the possibility of privatization given the questions on its role as regulator and operator of casinos.
Quiroz said the evaluation of Pagcor’s privatization continues but he declined to give any details.
He explained that overall, the GCG is studying the viability of the continued operations of GOCCs, which employ about 600,000 personnel.
Among the GOCCs that are under the GCG’s jurisdiction are the National Food Authority, Social Security System, Government Service Insurance System, Sugar Regulatory Administration, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, and the Clark Development Corp.
The GCG has recommended the abolition of 25 GOCCs now in various stages of liquidation, its executives said.
Source: Philippine News Agency
