Lacson urges passing of 'designated survivor' bill
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Ping Lacson called for the passage of a bill which seeks to extend the presidential line of succession beyond the top four government officials.
"To avert a potential constitutional crisis and leadership vacuum, the process to pass a 'Designated Survivor' measure guaranteeing the continuity and stability of operations in government should be started immediately," he said on Monday.
The current line of presidential succession under the 1987 Constitution only includes the vice president, the Senate president, and the House speaker, in respective order.
Further advocating for the measure, Lacson cited "recent events involving 'exceptional circumstances' such as terrorism [which] illustrate the need to address soonest the limitations of the 1987 Constitution's current provision on the line of succession."
"A constitutional crisis is possible if all four top elected officials, God forbid, die in one event such as the [State of the Nation Address] due to a terrorist attack in the Batasang Pambansa, or any occasion where the President and all three officials in the line of constitutional succession are present," he said.
In case of death or permanent disability of the four top government officials, Senate Bill No. 982, which Lacson filed in August last year, proposes the following line of succession:
- the most senior senator, based on the length of service in the Senate;
- the most senior representative based on the length of service in the House of Representatives;
- the member of the Cabinet designated by the president
The bill also stipules that before "any public or private activity, event or function" attended by the president, the vice president, and ranking officials, the chief executive must designate a member of the Cabinet to be sequestered in a "secret and secure location."
Lacson urged the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes and Laws to either immediately conduct a hearing on the bill, or to appoint him as a subcommittee chairman.
"I am willing and ready to sponsor and defend such an important piece of legislation on the Senate floor," he said.
'Designated survivor' measure required by 1987 Constitution
The lawmaker also criticized the House of Representatives for failing to act on its own version of the "designated survivor" measure, citing the requested withdrawal of House Bill 4062 by Rep. Precious Castelo (Quezon City) in August.
"Needless to say, passing such legislation is not only constitutional. It is in fact, required under the 1987 Constitution," Lacson said.
The lawmaker cited Art. VII, Sec. 7 of the charter, which says that "Congress shall, by law, provide for the manner in which one who is to act as President shall be selected until a President or a Vice-President shall have qualified, in case of death, permanent disability, or inability of the officials mentioned in the next preceding paragraph."
"Congress shall, by law, provide who shall serve as President in case of death, permanent disability, or resignation of the Acting President. He shall serve until the President or the Vice-President shall have been elected and qualified, and be subject to the same restrictions of powers and disqualifications as the Acting President," Article VIII Sec. 8 of the Constitution reads. — Bella Perez-Rubio
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