Unions back JDV’s constituent assembly proposal

Amending the Constitution by convening Congress into a constituent assembly won another major endorsement, this time from a major alliance of trade unions, Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. said yesterday.

The moderate All Workers Alliance Trade Unions (AWATU-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines) adopted a resolution at its 25th annual convention on Saturday endorsing constituent assembly and declared its support for a shift to a unicameral parliamentary government with an eventual transition to a federal system.

"The Philippines has been greatly left behind compared to other Asian countries which were once behind the Philippines 50 years ago," the alliance said in the resolution presented to De Venecia during the convention by former congressman Temistocles Dejon, AWATU chairman and president.

The alliance said there is a clamor from the labor sector to change or amend the 1987 Constitution to make the country more adaptable to changes in politics, finance, peace and order, terrorism, science and technology and world trade.

Dejon said AWATU will transmit a copy of the resolution, signed by its member unions, to President Arroyo and Senate President Franklin Drilon.

In his keynote address, De Venecia said Charter amendments will "attack the core of the Filipino crisis," adding that the convening of a constituent assembly has gained strong backing from the local government leagues of provinces, cities and municipalities, the Filipino Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, leaders of business, academe and professionals, students from Metro Manila’s major universities, and thousands of non-government organizations.

He said Filipinos have been misinformed by those who claim congressmen have selfish motives in amending the Constitution through a constituent assembly because they allegedly want to extend their term.

"This is black propaganda," he said. "We will submit these amendments to the Filipino electorate in a national plebiscite. Our people will be the final judge, they can either reject or ratify the amendments."

Support for convening a constituent assembly, he said, shot up dramatically in recent days after the House approved, by a clear majority, House Concurrent Resolution No. 16 convening both chambers of Congress into a constituent assembly to amend some political and economic provisions of the Charter.

De Venecia created a panel led by Western Samar Rep. Antonio Nachura, chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments, and Biliran Rep. Gerry Espina, principal sponsor of the resolution, to initiate a series of dialogues with the Senate, where support for a constituent assembly is growing.

He admitted that a constitutional convention is "a romantic idea" but said the process involved is divisive, politicized and will cost the government P8 billion.

"This will also mean that the Constitution it will write could take effect only in 2010 or seven years from now," De Venecia said. "The changes we seek are so urgent that this nation and our people cannot wait for 2010."

He said a constituent assembly could finish its task in three or four months using the same congressional staff and offices since "our offices are already set up and we are familiar with the rules."

De Venecia said the parliamentary system is the favored form of government in most of Europe and in most successful Asian democracies, and reiterated that a unicameral parliamentary system will eliminate the gridlock in Congress that has delayed and even jeopardized the passage of urgent measures.

He added that four major economic measures with tremendous promise to lift the economy remains stranded in the Senate — the Securitization Act, Railways Modernization Act, the Housing Bill, and the Farm Collateral Act.

The last bill will enable land reform farmers to use their farmland as collateral for credit.

He noted there are actually three chambers of Congress, the Senate, the House and the bicameral conference committee, where bills are refined and reconciled after being passed by both chambers.

"This has delayed the passage of vital measures," De Venecia said.