Charter Change

At the Philconsa monthly meeting on Tuesday night, former President Joseph Estrada identified the 10 most serious violations of the Constitution by President Gloria Arroyo.

The fight against the one-chamber constituent assembly to amend the Charter isn’t over as yet, despite a ruling by the Supreme Court (SC) dismissing for being premature two petitions that sought the nullification of moves in the House of Representatives to convene a con-ass in revising the 1987 Constitution.

MANILA, Philippines – A business group has expressed support for constitutional amendments only if it would improve the country’s economic interest and to be done only after the 2010 elections.

TWO major business groups yesterday said they support efforts to amend the Constitution despite mounting opposition to the latest House initiative to push changes without the Senate before the 2010 elections.

MANILA, Philippines – Administration congressmen’s push for Charter change through a constituent assembly (Con-ass) would worsen the economy and hasten the country’s fall into recession, GlobalSource, a New York-based think-tank, warned in a report.

MANILA, Philippines – As the country braces for a rally today against the planned convening of a constituent assembly by the House of Representatives, business groups have joined the chorus of protests against the lawmakers.

But CBCP appeals for nonviolent demos vs Con-ass MANILA, Philippines—Leaders of the Catholic church are encouraging the public to hold demonstrations “in a peaceful, nonviolent way” to protest the House majority’s midnight passage of a resolution to convene a constituent assembly to amend the Constitution.

Net Worth: I asked Makati Mayor Jojo Binay in a forum yesterday his net worth and his prompt reply was P16 million. What was your net worth when you were appointed officer-in-charge by President Cory Aquino in 1986, I followed up, and he said P2 million.

Many past actions and events in our legislative chamber aptly called the “Lower House” have jolted and shocked the public because of lack of any sane explanation. But its passage of Resolution 1109 constituting itself as a Constituent Assembly (Con Ass) to amend the Charter is the real shocker. It is by far the most…

I HAVE said it before. If we are to change the 1987 Constitution, if we are to go through with it at all, the best option is through a constitutional convention. The Constituent Assembly is not an option because people don’t trust the politicians in Congress.

The current happenings in Congress rekindle more intensely the lingering doubt about the usefulness and necessity of having a bicameral legislative body or of having a legislative body at all. Filipinos are again wondering why billions of pesos of their money are being wasted on such a Legislature that has not alleviated poverty in the…

THE former head of President Arroyo’s Kampi political party led 174 congressmen yesterday in filing House Resolution 1109, which proposed to convene Congress into a constituent assembly (Consa) to amend the Constitution.

Charter change (Cha-cha) through the one-chamber Constituent Assembly (Con-ass) is dead in the water, with the Supreme Court (SC) ruling having set the guidelines for parties running for the remaining party-list slots in Congress to represent marginalized and underrepresented sectors in society.

HOUSE Speaker Prospero Nograles claims big business is supporting his proposal to amend the Constitution’s economic provisions, saying that would make the business environment more resilient.

THE HEAT is on Speaker Prospero Nograles. And he is sweating because he could not produce 196 signatures to support the resolution authored principally by Representative Luis Villafuerte calling for Charter change (Cha-cha) via a constituent assembly (con-ass). Implicit is the unspoken undertone that the con-ass would eventually install the parliamentary system.

MANILA, Philippines – Almost two out of three Filipino adults, or 66 percent, oppose Charter change if it would allow the extension of the term of President Arroyo beyond June 30, 2010, a recent survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Farmers, fisherfolk and laborers have started their 54-day camp-out at the House of Representatives to protest renewed attempts to pass a resolution convening Congress into a constituent assembly.

MANILA, Philippines – Charter change battle lines are being drawn in Congress, which resumes session this week to decide whether or not to amend the 1987 Constitution.

Constitutional reforms, including the proposed shift to a unicameral parliamentary government, would make the Philippines stronger politically and economically, President Arroyo said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – A recent survey conducted by Pulse Asia showed that four in 10 Filipino adults or 42 percent oppose Charter change (Cha-cha).

President Arroyo is silently endorsing Charter change (Cha-cha) with her refusal to personally make a public statement that she will step down in Malacañang in June 2010.

MANILA, Philippines – The renewed effort of President Arroyo’s House allies for Charter change (Cha-cha) via a constituent assembly (con ass) is very much alive, Rep. Joel Villanueva of the party-list group Citizens Battle Against Corruption said yesterday.

THE American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines has joined the clamor for amendments to the 1987 Constitution, pressing for the scrapping of a provision that bans foreign ownership of land in the Philippines.

Former President Fidel Ramos said Tuesday that the time for Charter change has already passed, adding that the “Hyatt 10” incident in July 2005 should have been the “day of reckoning.”

Unless economic reforms in the 1987 Constitution are carried out, problems confronting overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world will continue to recur, a top business leader said over the weekend.