Cha-cha advocacy group to bring info drive to government offices

The Malacañang-backed Charter change advocacy commission (ad-com) directed its information campaign yesterday toward government offices, calling on civil servants to become an "army" for constitutional amendments.

"We want to explore the potential of civil servants," ad-com chairman Lito Monico Lorenzana said.

"They understand the need for a more efficient government."

Lorenzana said government employees could become effective "constitutional warriors" once informed of the changes needed in the Constitution.

"Our goal here is to inform and enlighten our bureaucracy on matters relative to Charter change," he said. "We believe that civil servants should be well-informed on the salient features of the proposed reforms to the Constitution," he said.

Ad-com will hold a series of briefings on constitutional reforms in various government offices this week as part of its information dissemination campaign nationwide.

It has also been meeting with local government units, business leaders, academe, youth and other sectoral groups.

Members of ad-com joined President Arroyo yesterday during a flag-raising ceremony in Malacañang at the pilot forum for government offices.

The next forum will be held on June 26 at the Mabini Hall, also within Malacañang grounds.

In Tagbilaran City in Bohol, the League of Provinces of the Philippines (LPP) chided members of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) for continuously breaching the line separating church and state.

In its 10th General Assembly over the weekend, the LPP approved a resolution urgently appealing the CBCP and leaders of religious groups to strengthen instruction on doctrines of their faith rather than involving themselves in government affairs.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado, LPP president, cited the recent actions of Bishop Deogracias Yñiguez, Bishop Emeritus of Quezon Julio Xavier Labayen, and Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz, who joined an anti-Charter change demonstration in Manila during the Independence Day celebration.

"The latest action of the bishops is already too much," Aumentado told The STAR in an interview.

"Yñiguez, Labayen and Cruz even went to the extent of aligning themselves with organizations known (as) left-leaning groups."  

According to the resolution, the CBCP and leaders of other religious groups have been issuing statements that have nothing to do with strengthening the faith of the people.

The LPP said that the latest statement of the CBCP in particular, along with some of its members, "encroach upon governmental concerns to uplift the quality of life of our people."

"The statement of CBCP and similar statements made by other leaders of religious groups aggravate the political strife in our country and preclude the healing and the unification of our nation," the resolution added.

Copies of the resolution will be presented to the CBCP and other religious leaders "for their consideration and appropriate action," the LPP resolution said.

The resolution, sponsored by Gov. Ben Loong of Sulu, was deemed approved by the majority of the 79-member LPP although only 19 attended the general assembly.

Aumentado said 19 members "could already do business" under the LPP charter, which allows attending members of an assembly to dispense the issue of quorum and proceed with the approval of resolutions.

During the LPP’s general assembly, Environment Secretary Angelo Reyes was invited to present the state of the country’s environment and discussed the important role of the local government units in the implementation of environmental laws, especially on solid waste management.

The LPP commended Reyes’s "firm and decisive move" to allow the resumption of the Lafayette’s mining operation in Rapu-Rapu, Albay.

The LPP likewise passed other resolutions, including its expression of support to President Arroyo "in her efforts to institute political and economic reforms to sustain the economic takeoff of the country."

The LPP backed the passage of this year’s proposed national budget and urged Congress to approve it without cuts.

Meanwhile, militant youth organizations expressed resentment yesterday at the administration’s plan to hold Charter change forums in public schools.

In a statement, the Youth Against Charter Change and Tyranny (Y-CHAT) and the Kabataan Party said the government wants to sponsor forums and encourage debates on Cha-cha in schools yet it remains silent and inefficient on the very issues that continue to cripple the country’s education system.

"There are more important issues that deserve thorough discussion and immediate action, such as finding solutions to alleviate poverty and hunger and save the education sector from its pitiful condition, rather than selfish political moves and platforms," Y-CHAT spokesman and Kabataan Party vice president Carl Marc Ramota said.

Ramota said it is insulting to realize that, while the government funds these forums, state schools remain cash-strapped and operate under decrepit conditions.

"If they think they can fool students to support (Mrs.) Arroyo’s Cha-cha, then they are terribly mistaken," he said.

"The youth are more critical and discerning. We definitely know better and no amount of politicking can make the youth believe otherwise."

Ramota said contrary to claims made by advocates, the proposed Cha-cha does not enjoy wide support among students.

"Mrs. Arroyo has long ago broken her vow to the youth and the people," he said.

"While we are open to change, we have no illusions that a new constitution will live up to its promise of better governance with the same clique remaining in power. The only change we want now is a change in the country’s leadership."

Ramota said the proposed Cha-cha is clearly anti-youth as it seeks to delete several constitutional provisions that will adversely affect youth and students.

"How can they say that Cha-cha is for the youth if it seeks to delete the constitutional provisions that recognize the youth’s role in nation-building and instruct the government to give priority to education and the welfare of young Filipinos?" he asked.

On the other hand, students from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Sta. Mesa, Manila barred the Malacañang-led Sigaw ng Bayan team yesterday from holding a pro-Charter change forum inside the campus.

The PUP student regent and Central Student Council learned of the scheduled forum from some concerned members of the PUP faculty.

Students, in turn, set up a human barricade to prevent the team from entering campus premises. — With Sandy Araneta, Katherine Adraneda