Con-com to hold public consultations in north Luzon, Bicol

After holding a series of public consultations in the Visayas, Mindanao and Metro Manila, members of the presidential consultative commission (con-com) on Charter amendments will be holding consultations in northern Luzon, Mindoro and the Bicol areas.

Con-com commissioners will deliberate tomorrow with sectoral delegates from Occidental and Oriental Mindoro, Romblon and Marinduque on amendments to the 1987 Constitution in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro.

On Wednesday, a team of commissioners will motor from Mindoro to Legazpi City in Albay to hold another public consultation that will involve delegates from Albay, Sorsogon, Catanduanes and Masbate.

On the same day, another team of commissioners will proceed to the Baguio Convention Center in Baguio City to hold similar consultations with delegates from Abra, Apayao, Kalinga, Benguet, Ifugao and the Mountain Province.

The following day, another team of con-com commissioners will head to the Clark Special Economic Zone at Clark Field in Pampanga to hold a consultation with delegates from Pampanga, Aurora, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Bataan and Zambales.

On Dec. 1, a con-com team of commissioners will head to the St. Paul University in Tuguegarao City to consult with delegates from Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino.

On Friday, con-com commissioners will head to Dagupan City to hold consultations with delegates from Pangasinan and La Union. On the same day, another team will motor to the University of Northern Philippines in Vigan City in Ilocos Sur to consult with delegates from Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur.

As with other previous consultations, sectoral delegates will be consulted as to what form of government they prefer between retaining the presidential system or shifting to the proposed parliamentary form of government.

Sectoral delegates will also be asked if they favor a shift to the proposed federal structure of government and if they are supportive of the proposal to open key economic areas to foreigners such as land ownership, ownership of mass media and development of the country’s natural resources.

Meanwhile, con-com chairman and former University of the Philippines president Jose Abueva has instructed all commission committees to finish all their proposals before Dec. 5 when all the committees will be consolidated into a committee of the whole.

Abueva earlier expressed confidence that the con-com would be able to finalize all its proposed amendments to the 1987 Charter by Dec. 10.

President Arroyo has given the commission until Dec. 15 to submit its list of proposals on Charter reform to Malacañang. The President will then submit the proposals to Congress for deliberation and consideration.

The Senate and House of Representatives remain at odds over how to amend the 18-year-old Charter.

Malacañang and the House are pushing for constituent assembly (con-ass) while the Senate believes constitutional convention (con-con) is the ideal mode of introducing amendments.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., however, said the Senate appears to be warming up to the idea of holding a constituent assembly.

Many of the senators who had earlier supported constitutional convention have now realized it would be more practical — and less expensive — to hold a constituent assembly, Pimentel said on Saturday.

Pimentel explained that the government does not have the time and money for a constitutional convention, which would need to be composed of delegates elected by the people.

He pointed out that the 1973 Constitution, which was replaced by the current Charter, was framed by a constitutional convention formed in 1971 by the late President Ferdinand Marcos, a year before he declared martial law.

On the other hand, a constituent assembly would save on time and money because the amendments to the Charter would be made by Congress.

The Senate blocked a renewed attempt to amend the Constitution last year because it disagreed with the House on its timing and on the method of constitutional amendment.

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. earlier said their current attempt to amend the Constitution is "irreversible" and that proposed amendments being drawn up by the presidential constitutional commission (con-com) would be ready by January or February for ratification in a plebiscite.

Charter change proponents want parliamentary elections to be held in 2007.

In her State of the Nation Address in July, Mrs. Arroyo pushed for a shift to a parliamentary form of government, saying it would speed up passage of needed legislation and make the government more efficient. — Mike Frialde