Structure of gov’t now up for discussion; discussion on manner of voting amendments put on hold
(Eagle News) — The Senate and the House of Representatives have apparently found a way to move forward with Charter Change.
This was after the Senate President Koko Pimentel and House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez agreed to “shift the focus” of discussion from the manner of voting proposed amendments to the Constitution to other issues.
Both Pimentel and Alvarez confirmed in a radio interview on Thursday that this was what they agreed on in a meeting on Wednesday night.
Senate Majority Leader Tito Sotto and House Majority Leader Rodolfo Farinas also attended the meeting.
“Ano ba specific na proposal na makakakuha ng maraming supporter then saka na tayo mag-usap uli kung meron na tayo makita na magandang proposal,” Pimentel said.
Structure of gov’t
According to Alvarez, these details include the structure of government under the amended Charter.
“May mga tinitignan tayong modelo dito gaya ng modelo ng Amerika na federal bicameral, yun namang modelo ng Germany na federal pero unicameral..Pagaaralan natin kung saan tayo magkakasundo..,” Alvarez said.
He said under the PDP-Laban’s proposal, only the federal type of government was specified, but not the structure.
What was “important,” he said, was that the structure be “simple” so that “madali maaddress ang problema sa iba’t ibang probinsiya.”
The parties in the meeting agreed to meet again possibly next week to discuss these details, Alvarez said.
Asked if a no-election scenario was possible, Alvarez said: “Tuloy tuloy na ang eleksyon.”
He said if the proposed amended Charter could not be subjected to a plebiscite in May, this could still be done during the midterm elections.
Benefits of federalism
Pimentel said that a federal type of government that was the goal of Charter Change would bring about four immediate benefits.
He said it would pave the way for the resolution of problems in Mindanao; would allow for more involvement of regions in national decision-making; would speed up the progress of all regions; and would allow for the further preservation and conservation of the culture of each region.
The House and the Senate were on a deadlock as to how Congress should vote proposed amendments to the Charter under a Constitutional Assembly.
Congressmen led by Alvarez had said that only a 3/4 vote of Congress was needed for this.
Alvarez said the House of Representatives alone could muster the numbers.
But the senators said voting should be done separately as a joint voting of the two houses of Congress would render the Senate–which has less numbers–irrelevant.
