Groups who are pushing for the establishment of a revolutionary government should take cue from President Duterte and stop their "dangerous experiment", Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said on Tuesday.
"The President has spoken. It should be read as a cease-and-desist order in big, bold letters by those pushing for this dangerous experiment," Recto said in a statement.
Duterte distanced from the fresh pitch for a revolutionary government by a group of his supporters, to supposedly to facilitate the shift to federalism. "Wala akong pakialam diyan. Wala akong kilala na mga tao na ‘yan at hindi ko ‘yan trabaho (I don’t care about that. I don’t know any of the people behind it and that’s not my job),” he said in his public address taped Monday night and aired Tuesday.
Last week, a group that identified itself as the Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte – National Executive Coordinating Committee (MRRD-NECC) organized an event in Clark Field, Pampanga that called for the establishment of a revolutionary government purportedly to hasten the transition to federalism.
Recto said this was a "presidential TRO (temporary restraint order) against an unconstitutional idea", especially as the country continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impacts.
"The call of the hour is not for rev gov, but government to rev up its response to the pandemic. A rev gov is not a vaccine against the virus. But a revved up government is what we need to fight the pandemic. Stick to the Constitution. It may have some bad components, but it remains the best app for the rule of law," Recto said.
Senator Joel Villanueva also reiterated his opposition to the proposed revolutionary government and maintained that charges should be filed against its proponents.
"The call for a revolutionary government is not protected speech. Inciting to sedition is a crime and those espousing this idea cannot invoke free speech protections of the Constitution," Villanueva wrote on Twitter.