In a draft declaration, the All-Parties Conference said there is a "felt need to change the form of government to one that is more quickly responsive to changing needs and conditions."
"To this end, Congress shall either convene as a constituent assembly or shall call for a constitutional convention whose delegates shall be elected in 2004," the declaration said.
The document does not detail what provisions of the Constitution the political parties want amended, except for the abolition of the Judicial and Bar Council, the body that screens appointments to the judiciary.
It said the council has so far failed "to bring forward good judges for appointment and promotion."
Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr., who had proposed the convening of the conference as national chairman of the ruling Lakas-NUCD, told the conferees that the people "are frustrated with our democracy."
"They see all its failings — its inability to produce good government, cut down corruption in office, and restore idealism in our public officials," he said.
He said it is time that political parties help the government make democracy work for the greater number of people.
"We must achieve democracy in substance and not just in form. We must create politicial institutions strong enough to move our country toward modernization," he stressed.
Among the specific reforms that political parties are set to agree on and as contained in their declaration are the cleaning up of the voters’ lists and the computerization of the electoral process by 2004, enactment of the Absentee Voting Bill, grant of government subsidies to political groups, strengthening of local governments, and professionalizing the civil service.
The declaration was drafted by a committee chaired by Rep. Teodoro "Teddyboy" Locsin Jr. (PDP-Laban, Makati).
Locsin’s party, which is headed by Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., like the opposition Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP), boycotted the political summit.
The Makati congressman said his party stayed away possibly in sympathy with Sen. Edgardo Angara’s LPD.
He said he attended the Manila Hotel conference as a member of Congress.
Besides Lakas-NUCD, major political groups participating in the three-day conference include the pro-administration Nationalist People’s Coalition whose recognized leader is businessman Eduardo Cojuangco Jr., the Liberal Party, which is headed by Batanes Rep. Florencio Abad, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, and the Nacionalista Party.
Some regional groups and party-list organizations are also summit participants.
In a message he gave the summiteers, former President Fidel Ramos said the nation’s leaders should help the people realize their aspirations for a prosperous future.
He said these leaders must muster the political will to make tough decisions, act with deliberate speed, attain peace all over the land, move the economy forward, and help the country gain the respect of the international community.
Conference participants belittled the boycott by the LDP and PDP-Laban.
"As you can see, wala namang epekto (it had no effect). The summit is well-attended," said House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II.
A maverick Lakas member, however, described the historic meeting of political parties as a "talkfest that will produce only gas but not solutions."
"Our people should not expect anything from the powwow of these self-proclaimed messiahs. Summitry as a means of solving the country’s ills won’t work," said Iloilo Rep. Augusto Syjuco Jr.