Why Cha-cha must move forward

For a nation that broke new ground in democratic processes with Edsa 1 and 2, it’s quite odd that all of a sudden, we have become so finicky about Charter change. Obviously, Cha-cha does not sit well with many of our big-time politicos and their backers, who after all, spent so much for the intoxicating privileges of a national elective position. The pork barrel is just one glaring item in a long list of perks that come with the position, which lately have included the privilege to "act out" – psychological speak for an adult displaying child-like behavior like petulance, bullying and fibbing.

With the people’s initiative (PI) shot down with finality by the Supreme Court, all hopes are now pinned on Plan B for Cha-cha, which is to convene Congress as a constituent assembly to propose changes to the 1987 Constitution.

A caucus was convened last week, wherein a working group was formed to finalize the proposed amendments. This group is composed of Reps. Constantino Jaraula or Lakas-CMD (Christian Muslim Democrats), Gilbert Teodoro of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, Luis Villafuerte of Kampi, Gov. Erico Aumentado of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, Raul Lambino of Sigaw ng Bayan, and a yet unnamed senator.

This caucus was followed by two more hosted by Malacañang over the last few days – a clear indication that President Arroyo remains committed to what she has described as much-needed political reforms to preserve the economic gains her administration has achieved, specially over the second half of this year.

What has emerged from the caucus is a plan to shift the form of government to a unicameral parliamentary body with majority of the members elected by district and the rest elected by region and/or party-list membership. This is definitely an improvement over previous versions of the proposed unicameral structure, which left out the senators and party-list representatives.

There also seems to be a move to postpone the May 10 mid-term elections to November 2007, in what Rep. Luis Villafuerte described as a two-stage shift to the unicameral-parliamentary system. "First, after the people ratify the shift in a plebiscite by January or February, Congress will convene immediately as an interim parliament to complete the amendments," he was quoted in media reports.

Meanwhile, the senators remain adamant about the need for the two chambers to vote separately on the Con-Ass move. "It’s how the House proposes to vote that causes a legal and constitutional problem. These things can be discussed if the House agrees that we vote separately," according to Sen. Frank Drilon.

The positions of Representative Villafuerte and Senator Drilon have one thing in common: both are untenable.

The problem about Representative Villafuerte’s two-stage shift is that it unnecessarily extends the terms of incumbent legislators. This is not only unwarranted, it is also unconstitutional. To recall, this was one of the things that doomed the PI, which would have been the least costly method to change the Constitution.

Senator Drilon’s position, which by the way reflects the general sentiment of the Senate regarding the Con-Ass, is untenable because with the Senate and the House voting separately, Con-Ass will be doomed to the same oblivion that our politicos sent the PI to.

Besides, Sen. Miriam Santiago, who is a respected constitutionalist, has provided a solution to this impasse on how the voting should be done. Several months ago, she noted that since the 1987 Constitution provides for three-fourths vote of Congress, without adding the phrase "voting separately" as in other Charter provisions, Con-Ass can prevail as long as 194 votes are gathered from both representatives and senators in any proportion.

"The House alone is not Congress; and the Senate alone is not the Congress. The Congress means both the Senate and the House. Therefore, under the present Consa provision, the power to amend or revise the Constitution depends on three-fourths vote of Congress taken as a totality. It does not mean three-fourths vote of the House plus three-fourths vote of the Senate. It simply means that the three-fourths vote must consist of votes from any number of representatives plus any number of senators," she said.

Well, what if the House drops its plan to extend the terms of incumbent politicians by delaying the mid-term elections, in exchange for the Senate foregoing its hardline position about voting separately on the Con-Ass?

Wouldn’t that be just perfect? It would bring closure to this endless bickering about Cha-cha, which has achieved nothing but to delay a prospect we all know we must face.

The long and short of it is that we need Cha-cha to remove protectionist economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution. We need to remove these provisions because these have served as a deterrent to foreign investors. We need foreign investors because local capital is not enough to fund our development. We need to have more capital infused into our economy to keep the momentum we have achieved so far. We need to keep the economic momentum in order to make a dent on our poverty levels. We need to ease poverty because freedom from poverty is a basic human right.

I believe we are all in agreement with these premises. Except perhaps for the hardline communists who have not gotten over their Cold War-era mindset.

In any case, since this whole Cha-cha exercise is meant to stabilize our nation, not the careers of our politicians, perhaps they can rise above their vested interests and make an enlightened decision about Con-Ass.

This is not exactly impossible. Just remember how Congress and Malacañang were able to muster their forces to pass the Expanded Value-Added Tax law, as a result of which we are now basking in the world stage as a middle-income economy. We can take it further from this point onward. The dividend of political unity at this juncture is a shot at becoming a first-world nation. Let no one forget that.

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The Great Performance Series at the Philamlife Theater opens on Saturday, December 9, 8 p.m., with world-acclaimed Filipino tenor Otoniel Gonzaga with Dulce, sopranos Rachelle Gerodias, Camille Lopez Molina and flutist Christopher Oracion. They will be performing under the baton of Rodel Colmenar of the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra. Call 9007023 or cell 0916-5204270 for free ticket delivery.

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My e-mail: [email protected]