Greater evil

One constitutional amendment that should be seriously studied and subsequently adopted is the elimination of the party list system of representation in the House of Representatives. The idea is good, the purpose is laudable but the actual workings obviously undermine our democratic and republican form of government. It is supposed to provide representation to the marginalized sector in our society like labor, peasant urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, women and youth in keeping with the spirit of republicanism or the opening of the administration of public affairs to all citizens. The truth however is that the system merely provided the red flag bearers and the left leaning organizations a strong foothold in the legislative body where they could advance an ideology completely at variance with our present form of government.

The best argument for the abolition of the party list system is provided by current antics of the five party list representatives belonging to Bayan Muna, Anak Pawis and Gabriela who are suspected of being part of the extreme left allegedly in tactical alliance with the extreme right and the opposition to overthrow the present government. True it is that they are mere suspects and the manner of carrying out their arrest is highly questionable. Such being the case they could have easily gone to court and obtained the proper remedies readily available to every citizen in a similar predicament especially if they are innocent as they vehemently professed.

But of course, being House members, they fully realized that they could take advantage of their privileged status obviously to further advance their cause by making a lot of noise with high media value. True enough they are now hugging the limelight and enjoying every moment of it portraying themselves victims of a rotten system under which they chose to work. Unfortunately the leaders and their colleagues in the Lower House accommodated them and gave them protective custody. The Lower House became an "Old Boys’ Club" and the dwelling place of the 5 "housemates" who continue to evade answering the charges leveled against them at the expense of the taxpayers.

To be sure the administration is also to blame for the current stand-off with the 5 "housemates". It has provided them enough grounds to denounce violation of their rights to due process by trying to arrest them without warrant under proclamation 1017. If they have probable cause to charge the five party list Representatives with rebellion or sedition, they could have easily obtained a warrant for their arrest. More than three weeks have lapsed since the plot was allegedly uncovered. Proclamation 1017 has already been lifted. If it is true that all the processes under the rules of court are available during and after Proclamation 1017, the PNP should have backed off from arresting them without warrant. Then the government prosecutors could have conducted the necessary preliminary investigation, notify the suspects of said investigation to give them an opportunity to present their side and file the necessary charges in court if there is indeed probable cause. Having done that the five suspected party list Representatives could no longer evade the warrant of arrest that will be subsequently issued by the court. They cannot invoke parliamentary immunity because the crime charged carries a penalty of more than six years imprisonment and therefore not covered by said immunity from arrest.

With all these defects and weaknesses in our democracy as shown by the recent episode on destabilization and the government’s erratic reactions, it seems clear that the party list system of representation may only bring a greater evil. Through this system, the red flag waving sectors in our society are using the blessings of democracy to replace it with their own diametrically opposite philosophy of government. Instead of opening the administration of public affairs to all citizens, the party list system may just swing the pendulum to the extreme left where the government will also be in the hands of a few ruling elite disguised as representatives of the masses and the working class. Freedom and the blessings of democracy are certainly not designed to be invoked and exercised in bringing about its own downfall.

E-mail: [email protected]