Noy: Still no to Charter change

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino again thumbed down Charter change as a means to further boost the economy, saying the country could not afford to be distracted from its goals at this time.

“Let me reiterate, I hope they can show the reason why we need to change the Constitution... the very foundation, the bedrock of our laws, will be changed. In the short term, there will be disruption. Will the disruption be worth the anticipated benefits?” Aquino told reporters in an ambush interview yesterday following the change of command at the Philippine Army in Taguig City.

The President said he could not see why the Constitution is being seen as an economic hindrance when a country like China, which never allowed foreign ownership, posted 10 percent growth for a decade.

He said the positive effects of Cha-cha must outweigh the negative before rewriting the Charter. 

House to start Cha-cha hearings

The House committee on constitutional amendments is scheduled to start its hearings on the proposals to amend the restrictive provisions of the Constitution on Feb. 18, a senior administration lawmaker said yesterday.

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said he and other authors of separate bills calling for Cha-cha would formally make motions to withdraw their respective proposals in favor of House Resolution No. 1 filed by Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. at the start of the hearing.

Rodriguez earlier filed a bill calling for amendments to the political provisions to change the present form of government to federal parliamentary through a constitutional convention.

La Union Rep. Victor Ortega filed a similar measure.

They have decided to withdraw their proposals.

“I think there’s unanimous support in the committee for implementing Charter reforms only in the economic provisions,” he said. 

Belmonte’s proposal would entail the inclusion of the phrase “unless otherwise provided by law” in every economic provision, which means, the restrictions would remain until bills are filed and approved to lift them.

The legislative route would also allow the President to veto any bill removing any restrictive provision. All proposed amendments are subjected to a plebiscite.

Rodriguez said the panel, chaired by Davao City Rep. Mylene Garcia-Albano, may come up with a decision by the end of the month.

The Speaker earlier said the chamber’s leadership would block any move to expand the scope of the proposed amendments to other provisions.

“I want to prove that it’s possible for us to zero in on an important issue (economic provisions) and keep it there,” Belmonte said.

Senate President Franklin Drilon on Thursday said the Senate supports moves to lift the economic restrictions in the Constitution, adding the chamber will just wait for the House to pass the resolution before senators will start deliberations on the measure.  

Priority bills

The Senate and the House of Representatives have lined up at least 30 bills – mostly economic in nature – for priority enactment this year even as leaders of Congress await word from Malacañang on when the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council would convene to allow the two branches of government to set a common agenda.

Drilon and Belmonte, along with other congressional leaders, met on Thursday to agree on a common list of measures whose passage can be fast-tracked.

“In the course of the discussions, we found that there are a number of bills that are pending both in the House and Senate, so we said we should give some preference to those bills and rush them,” Belmonte told reporters.

He said many of the pending bills, like the rationalization of fiscal incentives, have reached advanced stage of deliberations in the previous Congress and refiled in the present 16th Congress.

Belmonte said new and crucial measures that would have to secure approval from Congress include the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law, picture-based health warning on cigarettes and the proposed amendments to the economic provisions of the Constitution. – With Paolo Romero