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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Senators lose interest in Cha-cha amid push for People's Initiative at House -- Villanueva

Senators lose interest in Cha-cha amid push for People's Initiative at House -- Villanueva

Published Jan 23, 2024 07:31 am

Speculations that the House of Representatives (HOR) is behind the initiative to amend the 1987 Constitution through a People’s Initiative (PI) has sparked disinterest among senators to pursue the joint resolution that seeks to review economic provisions in the existing Charter.

This was mentioned by Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva in a press conference on Tuesday, Jan. 23.

Villanueva was asked if the HOR remains trustworthy if the leadership is apparently behind the PI, he replied: "It's obviously the main reason why a lot of the senators are not interested anymore in pushing for the joint resolution."

Last week, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri filed "Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6 proposing amendments to Articles XII, XIV and XVI of the 1987 Constitution."

When Villanueva was asked on Monday if a subcommittee will still be created to tackle the resolution, he replied: "With what's happening sino pa kayang Senador ang interesado sa RBH? (With what's happening who among the senators would still be interested in RBH?)"

It's just been as well since Zubiri said that the Senate, as tasked by President Marcos, will take the lead in the discussions of the economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution.

Zubiri met with the President and raised the alarm related to the ongoing push for PI to amend the existing Charter. He said that Marcos was not aware of the aim to diminish the power of the Senate.

Zubiri also mentioned that while the Constitution must be reviewed in keeping with the demands of the present and the possibilities of the future, "we believe that we must first exhaust all other avenues open to us, though policy-making and legislation."

According to him, Marcos said that the PI is "too divisive".

Yet despite this pronouncement, there have been reports that the PI signature campaign is still ongoing.

Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa on Monday, January 22, said that a member of Congress told him that House Speaker Martin Romualdez is the one behind the initiative to amend the 1987 Constitution through a People’s Initiative.

Dela Rosa is one of the senators who is opposed to the ongoing signature campaign that is asking voters if they are in favor of amending the 1987 Constitution to pave the way for Congress to jointly vote on proposed constitutional assembly in a constituent assembly or Con-ass.

The senator said he could not blame those pushing for the People’s Initiative, saying they were just taking orders from the House leadership.

Meanwhile, Zubiri has confirmed that the Senate already has a manifesto strongly expressing their opposition to the ongoing attempts to change the 1987 Constitution through a People’s Initiative describing such moves as a “brazen attempt to violate the Constitution, the country, and our people.”

A copy obtained by the Manila Bulletin showed the manifesto was signed by Senate President Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva and Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.

The Senate’s manifesto was apparently a result of the senators closed-door meeting on Monday, January 22.

Prior to this, the Senate leadership referred Resolution of Both Houses No. 6, which seeks to amend several economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution, to the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments, Revision of Codes chaired by Sen. Robinhood Padilla.

Zubiri had earlier said that President Marcos has tasked the Senate to lead discussions on Charter change despite the ongoing public signature campaign.

The Senate leadership has also said that a subcommittee on constitutional amendments, to be chaired by Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, will lead discussions on RBH No. 6.

But in a related development, Padilla said supports the three modes of Cha-cha which are constitutional convention (Con-con), Constituent Assembly (ConAss), and PI but he said that he is against Congress voting jointly and it should be done separately.

Padilla, however, said he has no qualms if subcommittee tackles the economic provisions of the Constitution.

“Pabor po yan para sa taong-bayan (That is favorable to the people),” Padilla said.

According to Padilla, creating a subcommittee to separately discuss the economic provisions of the Charter will also remove any perceived biases on his part.

"Besides being a lawyer, Sen. Angara is also well-versed in economics and finance," Padilla said.

Related Tags

People's Initiative House Speaker Martin Romualdez Senate President Juan Miguel F.  Zubiri Charter change House of Representatives Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva President Marcos
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