‘CHA-CHA DEFERRED UNTIL AFTER MAY POOLS’. Malacanang said yesterday any move to amend the Constitution would best be put off until after the May 2004 elections.
"In principle, the President is open to debate on the (Charter change) issue but as to whether it would be implemented before the elections is very remote," Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said in a radio interview. Bunye made the statement following reports that Charter change proponents will make a "final push" in January to have Congress convene as a constituent assembly that will introduce amendments to the Constitution.
Charter change advocates led by Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. said they will make the final push from Jan. 5 to 15 in a last-ditch effort to amend the Charter. Beyond that would be too late because many lawmakers would be busy seeking re-election in next year’s polls, De Venecia said.
Mrs. Arroyo had repeatedly stated she was in favor of amending the Constitution after the elections. Bunye, however, pointed out the President has always been consistent in her stand that any Charter change moves should not occur in the remaining six months of her administration. While Mrs. Arroyo is open to Charter change, including a possible change in the form of government, Bunye said the President still believes any move to amend the Charter is not appropriate at this time.
Meanwhile, administration lawmaker Davao Rep. Prospero Nograles said Mrs. Arroyo is the only presidential candidate who is particularly espousing the change in the form of government to federalism. Noting that Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. has primarily batted for a federal type of government to benefit Mindanao, Nograles said that among the presidential aspirants, only Mrs. Arroyo stood out calling for a change to federalism. Nograles said Mindanao stands to gain most in transforming the present presidential system into a federal government since the island provides the biggest contribution in income generation, agricultural production, mining and fisheries.
Under a federal government, the country will be organized into several federal states with complete autonomy from the central government, including income generation, legislation and administration of powers. Each will also have its own set of police forces, and political and economic powers. Certain state functions such as foreign affairs, national defense, taxation, currency, inter-state commerce and basic education would still remain under the jurisdiction of the central government.
Source: Philippine Star, 8 December 2003
‘DAVIDE IMPEACH RAPS BEST ARGUMENT VS CHA-CHA’. Is the impeachment crisis the best argument "for" Cha-cha (Charter change) that would install a parliamentary form of government as President Arroyo claims? "Not for, but against Cha-cha, Madam President," Sen. Ralph Recto said yesterday.
He said the events of the past weeks "showed the havoc that a parliament or unicameral legislature could wreak on the nation." "Under the present two-chamber system, the House acts as the prosecutor in impeachment cases, while senators sit as judges. In a unicameral system, these two functions are handled by just one chamber, making it a prosecutor and a judge at the same time," Recto said. He pointed out that the present setup protects the president and other impeachable officials from frivolous impeachment complaints.
Source: Philippine Star, 10 November 2003
"DRILON RENEGED ON VOW TO SUPPORT CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY". Pro-Charter change congressmen said Senate President Franklin Drilon twice reneged on his promise to President Arroyo to support moves for a constituent assembly to pave the way for a parliamentary system of government.
A senior administration lawmaker said on at least two occasions, Drilon along with Mrs. Arroyo and Speaker Jose de Venecia met with some leaders in business and academe at Malacanang and in the United States to discuss the need for amending the Constitution. In another instance, Drilon gave his commitment of support shortly after the July 27 failed coup attempt, the source said. Drilon made the promise even before Mrs. Arroyo said last Thursday she was supporting moves for a change to a parliamentary form of government.
Mrs. Arroyo earlier told reporters in Cebu City that a parliamentary system is better to speed up political and economic reforms. But she has proposed the holding of a Con-con " a constitutional convention with elected delegates " which she said is "the least divisive way to bring about change." She wanted issue of Charter change handled after the May 2004 elections.
Short on calling for his ouster, congressmen, however, pressed on Drilon to inhibit himself from Charter change discussions and allow "young, patriotic and idealistic" senators to handle the issue of constituent assembly. The lawmakers led by Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chairman of the House committee on accounts, said since Drilon assumed the Senate presidency, "he's being rated and it shows that nothing has been accomplished under his stewardship."
Source: Philippine Star, 13 October 2003
PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM IS BETTER, SAYS MACAPAGAL. In her most categorical statement yet in support of proposals to amend the Constitution, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said the country would be better off switching to a parliamentary system to speed up the pace of political and economic reforms.
"In my experience, given the needs of the 21st century, especially now that our Asian neighbors are beginning to accelerate their recovery again, I believe we should have a parliamentary form of government," the President told reporters in Cebu City Thursday.
The House majority favors an immediate shift to a parliamentary system via a constituent assembly and has even proposed that the President elected in 2004 serve a transition 3-year term to pave the way for a parliamentary system in 2007. The Senate, which will be abolished in a parliamentary system, is opposed to an immediate change and prefers a constitutional convention of delegates to be elected in 2004.
The President has said in the past she favors moves to amend the Constitution, and believes that a constitutional convention would be the least divisive way to bring it about.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 10 October 2003
JDV: CHARTER CHANGE DONE DEAL AFTER MACAPAGAL SPEECH. Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. said Sunday the President's speech on Oct. 4 was not only a declaration of her candidacy next May but her strongest endorsement yet for constitutional reform.
De Venecia said Ms Macapagal herself had pointed to the need to change the country's political system and her administration initiated the debate on shifting to a parliamentary from a presidential form of government. According to De Venecia, the House and Senate will convene as a constituent assembly for the purpose of making only one amendment to the 1987 Constitution-changing the form of government.
De Venecia gave two possible scenarios. One, the constituent assembly will finish its work before December when a referendum will be held. If the electorate approves the shift to a parliamentary government, the May 2004 presidential election will see a full shift to the new form of government but with a less powerful president.
Two, the constituent assembly's deliberations will extend to next year. In this case, the referendum will be held simultaneously with the national elections in May but with transitory provisions. "In this situation, we will be electing a transition president with a three-year term until 2007. Come 2007, we'll have the full shift to a parliamentary government," De Venecia said.
De Venecia said he and Norberto Gonzalez, the President's adviser for special concerns, are part of the "core group" that will shepherd Charter change through its paces. De Venecia said that in the next several days, a huge coalition for Charter change will surface to show the members of the Senate that the people want constitutional reform. This after majority of the senators had declared they were staunchly opposed to a constituent assembly as the means of amending the Constitution, preferring a constitutional convention whose delegates would be elected during the May 2004 presidential polls.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said Sunday it did "not make any sense" to interpret President Macapagal's bid for the presidency in 2004 as an endorsement for Charter change and the constituent assembly initiative.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 6 October 2003
DANDING’S NPC GUNNING FOR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY. The Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), headed by businessman Eduardo Cojuangco Jr., is at the forefront of a campaign to amend the Constitution through a constituent assembly and shift the form of government to a unicameral parliamentary system, a party official said yesterday.
Administration and opposition congressmen have been calling for a caucus of the leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate before Congress resumes regular session on Oct. 7 so that differences may be threshed out and the constituent assembly convened next month. Tarlac Rep. Gilberto Teodoro, head of the NPC contingent in the House of Representatives, said the presidential form of government — with the executive and legislative branches always at loggerheads — is "the root cause of our mediocre economic development as it has failed to provide a stable environment for investments." He said Charter change has long been adopted by the NPC as its platform of government. He also said the campaign for amending the Constitution is also a battle between the older and younger generation of lawmakers.
A young congressman from Mindanao, who spoke on condition of anonymity, lamented that "this is the most selfish batch of senators the people have ever seen." He added that Filipinos are better off with both chambers of Congress abolished and replaced with a single parliament.
Source: Philippine Star, 29 September 2003
VOTE FOR TRANSITION PRESIDENT PRESSED. House representatives are stepping up pressure on a reluctant Senate to agree to immediate changes to the Constitution that would allow the election of a transition President in 2004 and a full shift to a parliamentary system by 2007.
According to her adviser for special concerns, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself is "looking positively" at the two options that would be made possible only if the House and Senate convene as a constituent assembly to amend the Constitution before next May's elections. The President, who has so far been noncommittal on the issue of Charter change, was "not negative" in her attitude to the proposal, said Norberto Gonzales, the presidential adviser on special concerns.
Gonzales, Malacanang’s point man on Charter change, suggested recently that Ms Macapagal was the "ideal" choice for a transition President, fueling speculations that the Palace was itself promoting a transition presidency scenario. The proposal for a transition presidency-cum-parliamentary shift has renewed the largely House-initiated campaign to amend the Constitution on or before the elections of 2004. The two chambers are split on just how the amendments are to be made. The House of Representatives has opted for a constituent assembly made up of members of Congress. The Senate would like a constitutional convention of delegates elected during the 2004 elections.
The idea of a transition President and a full shift to a parliamentary system by 2007 was outlined last week by Speaker Jose de Venecia, Gonzales and presidential political adviser Jose Maria Rufino. The Nationalist People's Coalition of businessman Eduardo Cojuangco, the largest bloc in the House after the ruling Lakas-CMD (Christian Muslim Democrats) party, has thrown its support behind the proposal.
NPC leader Representative Gilberto Teodoro of Tarlac province has suggested that under the proposal, the shift to a parliamentary system and the election of a transition President must be completed and approved by plebiscite before the May elections. Over the weekend, Teodoro renewed the campaign to pressure the Senate to agree to a constituent assembly, urging Senate President Franklin Drilon and the other senators to "rise above institutional loyalties."
Drilon was quoted last week as saying that the Senate was not inclined to allow a constituent assembly, and would insist on a constitutional convention. According to the two new proposals that is gaining ground in the House, the President to be elected in 2004 will serve for only three years until 2007, and this would be provided for in the transitory provisions of an amended Constitution.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 22 September 2003
BUSINESS LEADER URGES CHA-CHA ANEW. Industrialist and consumer advocate Raul Concepcion renewed calls yesterday for a constitutional amendment to change the country’s form of government from presidential to parliamentary.
A parliamentary system, he said, would make the prime minister and all Cabinet ministers more accountable for their actions and easier to replace. Concepcion’s stand was to amend the Charter simultaneously with the 2004 national elections. He said delegates to the constitutional assembly could be elected during the 2004 election so that after one year, a new Constitution would be ready for ratification and a shift to a parliamentary form of government could be effected.
Concepcion also suggested the appointment of an elder statesman such as former President Fidel Ramos to head the Department of National Defense (DND). He said this would help restore foreign investor confidence as well as confidence in the local business sector. According to Concepcion, Ramos could help restore professionalism in the military and would definitely restore some stability in government.
Concepcion lamented that the current political mudslinging is "debilitating" the country. This, he said, would only result in a breakdown of the country’s basic political institutions. He called on members of the Senate and Congress to conduct their exposés in closed-door sessions and when ready with the facts, to file the necessary charges in court.
Source: Philippine Star, 3 September 2003
SENATE TO START CHA-CHA DEBATES. As the Senate sets debates today on proposals to amend the Constitution, Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. has appealed for a constituent assembly to allow "Charter reforms."
De Venecia met last week with Senate President Franklin Drilon, who had opposed for months a House proposal to convene Congress into a constituent assembly for Charter change (Cha-cha). Drilon had committed to a full plenary discussion of the report of the Senate committee on constitutional amendments, headed by Sen. Edgardo Angara, calling for a constitutional convention to propose amendments to the Constitution. "We hope the majority of the senators when they start discussions will eventually realize that the most practical and best response to recent developments will be a constituent assembly and not a convention," said Western Samar Rep. Antonio Nachura, chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments.
Earlier, Sen. Joker Arroyo said a constitutional convention could result in "political has-beens and second stringers" proposing amendments to the Constitution. In pushing his point, De Venecia said Charter reforms could stabilize the country’s shaky political situation and boost the economy. Angara’s committee on constitutional amendments had voted in favor of a constitutional convention to propose amendments to the Constitution. De Venecia said "Charter reforms" would address the country’s basic needs for political and economic reforms.
De Venecia said the House of Representatives’ proposal calls for a shift to a unicameral, parliamentary form of government, with a fixed transition to a federal system, and the synchronization of elections every five years to reduce corruption. It defers action on amending the economic provisions, leaving it to a new National Parliament to initiate the measure, he added.
Source: Philippine Star, 25 August 2003
SENATORS HAVE MINDS SET ON CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION. Senators who voted for a Constitutional convention to tackle Charter change proposals said Thursday that it would be tough to change their mind or their vote once the issue is taken up on the Senate floor and eventually in the bicameral conference committee.
"It's really an uphill fight," Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. conceded, two days after he and seven other members of the Senate committee on constitutional amendments voted to amend the 1987 Constitution through a constitutional convention (Con-con). Pimentel said the chance of the Senate approving a resolution concurrent with that of the House of Representatives which calls for a constituent assembly (Consa) to amend the Constitution would depend on how committee chair Senator Edgardo Angara argues the Consa option. It would also depend, he said, on the "willingness of the senators to listen to the Consa view."
But with Senate President Franklin Drilon saying that the 22-member Senate would need the vote of 16 members to pass a Senate resolution endorsing the Con-con mode, Pimentel acknowledged it would be a difficult fight. Drilon said that with his earlier resolution endorsing the Con-con mode being supported by 14 senators including him, they only need two more senators to vote in their favor in order for the Senate to adopt the Con-con mode.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 18 July 2003
ANGARA: CONGRESS STILL HAS TIME FOR CHARTER CHANGE. Sen. Edgardo Angara said yesterday there was still time for Charter change even if the elections are just 10 months away.
"We can do it if we really believe that amending our Constitution could propel us to a higher growth path," he told reporters. "We should not be stuck with the present system, which has failed us." Angara said Congress can convene itself into a constituent assembly and the proposed constitutional changes can be submitted to the people for ratification in a plebiscite later this year or early next year. Convening Congress into a constituent assembly is the fastest and most inexpensive mode of amending the Constitution, he added. Angara said if the lawmakers decide to call a constitutional convention, it would take at least six years before amendments can be effected.
Angara chairs the Senate committee on constitutional amendments. The committee’s 14 members have until today to tell or write their chairman whether they are for a constituent assembly, a convention or a referendum. The referendum, which would be held together with the May 2004 presidential elections, would ask the people whether they want Cha-cha, and how they would like it done and when. Angara said an initial study made by his panel’s legal staff showed that the committee would need at least five votes (or a majority of a quorum of eight) to endorse any of the three choices. Angara said if none of the three options receives five votes, he would like to resort to a Senate rule that empowers five senators to petition the plenary to force any pending measure out of a committee.
Most senators, including Senate President Franklin Drilon and Sen. Joker Arroyo, are for calling a constitutional convention. Drilon and Arroyo have said there is no time for Cha-cha before the 2004 elections.
Source: Philippine Star, 14 July 2003
SWS: 70% OF PINOYS FOR CON-CON, 72% FOR PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM. Seventy percent of Filipinos prefer a constitutional convention to propose amendments to the Constitution, according to the latest survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).
While this is good news for senators who are pushing for constitutional convention to amend the constitution, only one out of five Filipinos feels that some constitutional amendment is needed at this time. Unfortunately for lawmakers who advocate a transition to a parliamentary system of government, the new SWS survey also found that 72 percent of the public is in favor of keeping the present presidential system of government. The noncommissioned survey, which was conducted from May 28 to June 14, involved 1,200 respondents and has an error margin of plus or minus three percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level for national-level percentages.
The Senate, when it resumes its regular session on July 28, will have to tackle the issue of amending the Constitution either through Congress sitting as a constituent assembly or through a constitutional convention. Constituent assembly as a mode of Charter change has been passed by the House of Representatives, while 12 senators, led by Senate President Franklin Drilon, proposed holding a constitutional convention to amend the Constitution. The Senate committee on constitutional amendments, chaired by Sen. Edgardo Angara, will have to vote on the issue and report its preferred mode of change to the Senate floor for debate and decision.
The SWS survey found that while 70 percent of Filipinos want Charter change through a constitutional convention, 28 percent favor amendments through a constituent assembly. One percent of respondents think that either choice is "okay," while another one percent do not want Charter change at all. Though this survey finding will strengthen the cause of legislators who want a constitutional convention, the Senate needs a two-thirds vote to adopt this mode of change. The House will also need a two-thirds majority to shift its preference from constituent assembly to constitutional convention.
Legislators will have to convince the general public that amendments to the Constitution are needed at this time. Only 20 percent of Filipinos are convinced of the need that there are provisions to the Constitution that have to be changed now, according to the SWS survey. Those professing little knowledge of the Constitution have decreased to 60 percent from 75 percent last November. Another "sticky" problem faced by proponents of constituent assembly and a shift to parliamentary is that the new SWS survey found that 72 percent of Filipinos are in favor of keeping the presidential system, while 28 percent favor a shift to some kind of parliamentary system. Even among Filipinos who favor the parliamentary system, virtually all would like to have the President retain some powers.
Source: Philippine Star, 11 July 2003
DRILON: PRESIDENT PLAYS NO ROLE IN CHARTER CHANGE. Legislative history shows the President plays no role when it comes to amending the Constitution, according to Senate President Franklin Drilon.
Drilon disputed lawyer Camilio Sabio's claim that under the Constitution, President Macapagal-Arroyo had no choice but to participate in the current campaign to amend the Charter. Sabio in turn had questioned Drilon and Sen. Joker Arroyo's earlier statements that the President had a "zero role" in Charter change as this was exclusively a congressional initiative.
Drilon checked legislative records, however, and said these showed the joint resolution passed by Congress in 1967 calling for a constitutional convention to amend the 1935 Constitution "was not passed to then President (Ferdinand Marcos) for approval." Joint Resolution No. 2, which was adopted on March 16, 1967, was signed by then Senate President Gil Puyat and Speaker Jose B. Laurel, he said. The resolution, Drilon added, "became effective immediately."
The move to amend the 1987 Constitution had drawn near unanimous support in the House but has been stymied in the Senate. One of the proposals the senators oppose, Drilon said, is the establishment of a transition government between 2004 and 2007 when the new Constitution would take effect. This makes the Charter change initiative, Drilon said, just "another phrase for term extension."
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 7 July 2003