Senator Christopher ‘’Bong’’ Go on Thursday, August 25 threw his support to the call of fellow Senator Robinhood Padilla to a shift to federalism.
Go said this shift was espoused by former President Duterte because greater benefits of a stronger local government are ensured and lives of Filipinos are prioritized.
He issued the statement after Padilla formally opened public discussions on the merits and demerits of amending the 1987 Constitution as chair of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes.
Those who attended the public discussion today included Christian Monsod ,former chairman, Commission on Elections (Comelec); Executive Director Jonathan Malaya of the Center for Excellence in Local Governance and former Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Undersecretary; and Ding Generoso, spokesperson of the Consultative Committee (ConCom) and Senior Technical Assistant to the former Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
‘’There is one truth that cannot be denied - that we Filipinos must respond to the call to improve and enhance our Constitution if needed)," Padilla said at the committee's organizational meeting.
The Constitution is our country’s most important document. It is that which empowers public institutions, embodies fundamental regulations and principles, provides people’s rights and maintains law and order in the country. It is the very backbone of society and equips us legislators with the basis for proposing and enacting laws, a power that is vital in addressing the needs and interests of the nation and our people,’’ he added.
To Go, the 1987 Constitution contains provisions which are either outdated or are no longer helping our country grow and advance alongside today’s most pressing concerns.
‘’Napakatagal na po ng ating Constitution. I think, it’s 36 years na po (The Constitution is old. I think it is 36 years old already,’’ he said.
‘’That is why I am one with our Chairman, Senator Robinhood Padilla, in his call to shift to federalism. Hindi naman po kaila sa atin na iyon po ang pinangarap ni dating pangulong Rodrigo Duterte (That was the dream of former President Duterte,’’ he stressed.
Go emphasized that the goal and beauty of federalism is to preserve personal or regional liberties by distributing and allocating the powers of government so that one department or group might not dominate all powers and ensure that true participation and decision-making happen on the ground.
‘’However, this will remain out of reach if only a few people are fully aware of the benefits of federalism. Our challenge today is to further explain to our people in order for them to understand how beneficial it could be, especially iyong mga nasa grassroots. This needs to be properly explained to raise public awareness and engage fruitful participation,’’ he said.
‘’This is why I am pledging my support to this committee, headed by our good chairman and I commend his initiatives to review and study the 1987 Philippine constitution. We must always pursue whatever is the best for our country and our people.
The discussion centered on three points:
* Is there a need to amend or revise the 1987 Constitution?
* What modality will be appropriate for amending or revising the Constitution?
* For amendments and revisions to the Constitution, should the members of the Senate and House of Representatives vote jointly or separately?
According to Padilla, it cannot be denied that the Constitution has a key role in democratic countries like the Philippines - and that from 1898 to 1987, there had been changes to the basic law of the land.
"So many events have taken place, including revisions, to various versions of the Constitution for more than a century. If we would tackle them one by one, it would take quite a long time)," he said.