Preamble
WHEREAS, while airlines, railways and bus operators are paid for the carriage of public mail, domestic shipping operators are required under the Revised Administrative Code of 1917 to carry such mail free of charge; WHEREAS, while the Bureau of Posts is willing and financially able as a result of higher postal rates to compensate vessels for domestic mail carriage, it cannot do so because of this legal impediment; WHEREAS, in fairness to domestic shipping operators who render mail service and to assist them in improving their operations, it is necessary to authorize the Bureau of Posts to pay for such service; NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution, do hereby order and decree as follows: