‘Cha-cha to focus only on economic provisions’

MANILA, Philippines –  To jumpstart the process of amending the 1987 Constitution without making the issue divisive, Charter change (Cha-cha) proponents in the House of Representatives said they would limit the debates to economic provisions that urgently need reforms.

House Majority Leader and Mandaluyong City Rep. Neptali Gonzales and Misamis Occidental Rep. Loreto Leo Ocampos, in separate interviews, said efforts to amend the Constitution in the past failed because the debates focused on proposals to change the system of government, which to many lawmakers as well as a majority of the public was just a ploy to keep sitting officials in power. He said the issue has spawned “lingering distrust” among lawmakers.

“I’m in favor of a piecemeal amendment of the Constitution not only because we have to be careful but also what is really urgent and long, long overdue are the reforms for the economic provisions of the Constitution,” Ocampos, chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments, told The STAR.

Ang Kasangga party-list Rep. Teodorico Haresco, vice chairman of the House committee on small business and entrepreneurship development, said many sectors as well as the general public agree that reforming the economic provisions of the Constitution is urgent.

One of the proposals is to relax the restrictions on foreign ownership of business in the Philippines to allow for more capital to flow into the country.

He said in an increasingly borderless world, the Philippines needs more foreign investments than it did decades back. He said multinational companies now have “many choices for their investments and restrictive national laws would spell economic stagnation for us.”

“These days, because of easy access to information, ease of communication and global operations of big, big companies, it’s easy for them to make a decision whether or not to invest in the Philippines. We must make it easy for them to do so. And we just have to reform some provisions,” Haresco said.

He said President Aquino’s flagship Public-Private Partnership (PPP) program would not take off if no reforms in the economic provisions in the Charter are made.

Gonzales said focusing the Cha-cha discussions on economic provisions would make the issue acceptable to the people.

He and Ocampos said senators would also likely agree to a constituent assembly – the Senate and the House of Representatives forming one body – if they are given assurance that there would be separate voting and that only economic provisions would be tackled.

They reiterated the huge cost of calling for a constitutional convention (con-con). Leaving the Cha-cha discussions to a con-con could lead to a wholesale revision of the Constitution, they added.

“Since we would be a constituent assembly, the work focused solely on the economic provisions would be swift and inexpensive and we would quickly reap the benefits of the constitutional reforms,” Gonzales said.

But for Malacañang, the Charter change issue is divisive, hence unlikely to get support from President Aquino.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma said lawmakers may consider the opinion of constitutional expert Fr. Joaquin Bernas that certain changes can be made through legislation or through the filing of pertinent bills.

“Our position is already very clear. That is not a priority of the President. That is also not the priority of the Cabinet but we respect and welcome the initiative of the lawmakers, of some people because that is part of our democratic processes,” Coloma said over radio station dzRH.

Coloma said a wholesale revision of the Charter might distract the government from its focus on eradicating corruption and poverty.

“That would be the case because based on experience, if we do it wholesale it is quite disturbing and might create division unnecessarily,” Coloma said.

But Coloma said the legislature, as an independent branch of government, may have its own priorities.

He said even during Cabinet meetings, Cha-cha was never discussed.

Coloma expressed belief that the Palace’s stand was a reflection of the people’s sentiment, at least at this time.

He said the President would take advantage of the people’s high trust in his administration to carry out reforms, which do not have to include Cha-cha. –Paolo Romero (The Philippine Star) with Aurea Calica