President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said that changing the 1987 Constitution is not his priority as the government can still do many things, even with its present form.
Marcos said this as he concluded his five-day official visit to Tokyo, Japan, where he brought home $13 billion in contributions and pledges.
In an interview with the media onboard Philippine Airlines Flight PR001, the President was asked if he was willing to go as far as changing the Constitution to address the roadblocks and bottlenecks that drive investors out of the Philippines.
In response, Marcos said there was still much the government could do with the 1987 Constitution.
"It's not a priority for me because maraming ibang kailangang gawin, eh (there are other things to do). There are so many other things that we need to do first," he said.
"Makukuha naman natin yung gusto (We can get what we want) but within the present – the present constitutional – the way the Constitution is written," he added.
The President, however, acknowledged that the issue of charter change surfaced because of the calls for economic provisions.
"The reason that it's being talked about is because of the economic provisions," he said.
"Gusto nga natin magkaroon ng investment kung minsan sagabal ‘yun. Alam naman ninyo ‘yung mga issue diyan, ‘yung mga ownership, appropriation, ownership, yung mga ganoon (We want investments but sometimes those provisions are hindrances. You know the issues of ownership, appropriation, things like that)," he added.
"But for me, lahat itong mga pinag-usapan kaya nating gawin na hindi palitan ang Saligang Batas (Every talk that we're having, we can do it without changing the Constitution)," he continued.