The PRBoA in its notice issued last week said that "The Architects must rally in the Crafting of the CE Law (via SB 2770)", said in the notice issued by the Professional Regulatory Board of Architecture.  It may be noted that last March 31, 2011, the civil engineers (CEs) through the Office of Senator Panfilo Lacson, caused the re-filing in the Senate (15th Congress) of a 2004 House Bill that was already decidedly defeated by the architects and archived in early 2005 by the House of Representatives (13thCongress)."

As with the 2003 House version, the resuscitated Senate measure still seeks to make the CEs the prime professional of the construction industry, particularly for the architectural planning and design buildings for human habitation, for which the CEs are clearly unqualified and disqualified under law i.e. the CEs have no academic nor sub-professional preparation for architectural practice and the CE licensure examination does not test the examinees for knowledge or skillsets required for the architectural planning and design of buildings. In stark contrast, the 450-question (2-day) licensure examination for architects (LEA) is one hundred percent (100%) about the architectural and engineering (a&e) planning and design of buildings and their settings/ environs.

The current Senate measure (Senate Bill 2770) subtly seeks to vest ces with the exclusive professional privilege of preparing, signing and sealingarchitectural documents i.e.architectural plans, sections, elevations, specifications, estimates, drawings, details, documents, reports, etc. And will allow the CEs to practice the separate state-regulated profession of architecture in the Philippines (ph). The legislative measure is apparently the CE solution to their failure to seek permanent remedies from the courts since they started filing cases in early 2005. The bill was filed at the Senate about a week after the unsuccessful march 2011 meeting between the Boards of Architecture and Civil Engineering at the Professional Regulation Commission.

According to the PRBoA “let all Architects rally to once again decisively defeat the provisions in the measure that will allow CEs to practice architecture in the Ph. As this concerns your future, please make it your urgent business. Stand up and be counted! Please get in touch (visit, write, call, text, email, facebook, twitter, etc.) With the senator you know best, to help correctly craft a measure that shall finally and decisively separate the professions of architecture and civil engineering in the Ph after over 60 years of conflict."

The PRBoA advised that in making representations with their favorite senator/s, the RLAs may initially use the position paper crafted by the PRBoA and posted at the latest publications section of their website.

References:

• Senate Bill No. 2770 as filed by Senator P. M. Lacson, click here

• Status of the Bill, click here

• Senate Bill No. 2109 as filed by Senator F. Escudero, click here

• Status of the Bill, click here

• Official Stand of the Professional Regulatory Board of Architecture, click here