Lagman: Cha-cha to open economy to foreign powers

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ALBAY Rep. Edcel Lagman yesterday said the separate efforts by the House of Representatives and the Senate to review and introduce amendments to the Constitution will most likely lead to the opening of the country’s economy and land to foreign ownership.

Lagman, who is a member of the Liberal Party, said the “war” against the 1987 Constitution has been launched from two fronts — one from the House through a people’s initiative (PI) by specifically making the voting procedure in a constituent assembly (con-ass) as a joint voting by congressmen and senators, and another, by Senate amendments through a con-ass with the House and Senate voting separately on proposed amendments to the Charter’s economic provisions.

“I believe these apparently separate efforts will end in a compromise by opening wide the economy to alien investments through a constituent assembly, with the House and the Senate fast-tracking the approval of the constitutional amendment with the backing of both chambers even voting separately,” Lagman said in a statement.

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The veteran lawmaker warned that once the amendments are introduced, “the victim will be the nation’s patrimony when sensitive enterprises like public service, education, media and advertisement will be open to alien control and domination.”

“The Charter change initiatives will divide and obfuscate the people and divert the efforts of the political departments from the real problems not attributable to the Constitution,” he also said.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri last Monday said President Marcos Jr. has tasked the Senate to spearhead the deliberations on proposals to amend the 1987 Constitution as he believes that the PI mode being pushed by the House was “too divisive.”

Zubiri has already filed Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No.6, which essentially called for the House and the Senate to convene as a con-ass to introduce the revisions.

Lagman insisted that Charter change “is out of step because the President and the Congress must address the crippling crises in the economy, agriculture, food security, education, fiscal deficit, debt burden, and China’s continuing aggression in the West Philippine Sea, the vast and rich territorial waters of which have been awarded in favor of the Philippines in 2016 by the International Arbitral Tribunal.”

“The Charter change initiatives will divide and obfuscate the people and divert the efforts of the political departments from the real problems not attributable to the Constitution,” he said.

‘PRINCIPAL’s OFFICE’

Former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr., who chaired the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments in the 18th Congress, took a jab at senators for making it appear that they are now the ones leading the Cha-cha campaign and not the House.

He laughed off Zubiri’s claim that the Senate was tasked by no less than the President to lead the Cha-cha campaign since the House has long been at the forefront of the initiative to change the Constitution.

Garbin, who is among the advocates of PI in Bicol region, said the Senate only softened its stance on Cha-cha after Zubiri and other senators met with the President.

“Ang nangyari ngayon parang ‘yung Senado ang pinatawag ng principal e. Pinatawag ng principal, ‘Punta kayo dito sa principal’s office, gawin niyo nga ang inyong assignment at homework (What’s happening now is the Senate appears to have been summoned by the principal. ‘Go to the principal’s office, do your assignment and homework’),” Garbin told a press conference at the House.

He said the Senate merely vowed to comply to do their “homework.” “Pero masama ‘yung dating dahil pinalabas pa nila na sila ‘yung mangunguna (But it looks bad because they made it appear that they’re leading it,” Garbin said.

“It’s long been the consensus of Congress, of the House of Representatives, na matagal na ‘tong dapat inaktuhan (that this should have been acted upon a long time ago) ‘yung (the) economic amendments ng ating (of our) Constitution,” said the former lawmaker, who is a lawyer.  “It should be told na nangunguna talaga dito ‘yung (that the one leading this is the) House of Representatives.”

Garbin said that it was during the previous 18th Congress that the House passed RBH No.2, which proposed economic amendments to the Charter.

“Nai-transmit namin sa Senado, walang nangyari, inupuan. Ngayon naman, 19th Congress, ganun pa rin (We were able to transmit it to the Senate, nothing happened, they sat on it. Now, in the 19th Congress, same thing happened),” he said.

Garbin was referring to the House’s Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6, calling for a constitutional convention to amend “restrictive” economic provisions of the Charter to enable the country to attract more foreign investments, and its implementing measure, House Bill No. 7352.

Rep. Erwin Tulfo (PL, ACT-CIS) said Speaker Martin Romualdez has nothing to do with the PI signature drive, saying that as communications head of the House, he has not heard the Speaker give an instruction for the campaign.

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“Wala namang instructions na ganun na, ‘Let’s do this, let’s push this,’ ‘may regalo sa SONA,’ (There’s no such instruction like, ‘Let’s do this, let’s push this,’ ‘there’s a SONA gift,’” he said. “There’s no such thing. Last I heard, when the House leadership tsaka mga (and) political party leaders, hindi naman napag-usapan yun e na pipilitin nq magkaroon ng people’s initiative, na kailangan ng signature campaign (it was not discussed that we should force a people’s initiative, that there should be a signature campaign).”

Garbin said it was the Albay chapter of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) that initiated the PI in Albay, adding that he was invited to one of the chapter’s meetings as former chair of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments.

“The rest, League of Cities of the Philippines and other civic organizations… and of course the local leaders, even chief executives and barangay captains, mayors are the ones pushing. It snowballed from there,” he said.

For his part, House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe welcomed the Senate’s support for the Cha-cha campaign, saying it is “an extraordinary development for our nation.”

“The Senate has finally seen the light, embracing the House’s longstanding belief in the necessity of constitutional amendments. This newfound unity between the two legislative bodies signifies a significant stride forward for our country,” he said.

He also praised the Senate President’s confidence in securing the needed support for this initiative, “signifying a strong and growing consensus among legislators on the importance of these changes.”

Dalipe also expressed his appreciation for the Senate’s dedication to passing the amendments in the first quarter of 2024, underlining their understanding of the pressing need for these crucial reforms.

“The alignment of the Senate and the House in amending the Constitution not only exemplifies legislative cooperation but also reinforces our dedication to advancing the welfare of our nation,” Dalipe said. “We are encouraged by the Senate’s acknowledgement of the House’s position and look forward to collaborating closely to ensure the effective passage and implementation of these constitutional amendments.”

SONA GIFT?

Rep. Raoul Manuel (PL, Kabataan), a member of the Makabayan bloc, stood by his earlier claim that the Cha-cha campaign is meant to be a “gift” to the President for his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July, saying the information came from a fellow lawmaker.

The Kabataan party-list last week said the plan for the PI signature drive started as early as December 15, 2023 and the target plebiscite is intended to be finished by June 17 so that the results would be known by July 8, right before the SONA.

The group said the July plebiscite would give pro-Cha-cha congressmen the opportunity to hold a constituent assembly on SONA day when members of Congress convene for a joint session.

“Kasama po ‘yan sa mga nakuha nating impormasyon, in particular mula po sa nasa loob din ng Kamara (That’s part of the information we were able to gather, particularly from those who are also in the House),” Manuel said.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian is not confident that the Cha-cha resolution will be approved before the President’s SONA in July.

“This will take time to discuss and debate,” Gatchalian said.

DIFFERENT CON-ASS

Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara said the move to review the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution will be done through a “different type” of con-ass.

Angara, who has been named by Zubiri to head a sub-committee of the Senate Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes to review the Constitution, said that under the con-ass he is planning to convene, lawmakers will not sit as one body in tackling the proposed revisions but will work separately. Under the original con-ass mode, lawmakers would convene into one body to discuss proposed Charter amendments.

Likewise, Angara said the approval of the introduced amendments will require at least 2/3 votes from both the Senate and the House voting separately, unlike in the passing of regular laws which only need majority votes for approval.

“Ito ay different type of procedure sapagkat imbes na uupong isa ang Kamara at ang Senado, ‘yan ‘yung pangkarinawang ideya ng constituent assembly, dito (ay) dadaan sa pamamaraan ng batas. Pero ‘yung boto ay mas mataas ang requirement para ma-approve, ‘yung 2/3 na kailangang makuhang boto. (This is a different type of procedure because the House and the Senate will not sit as one body, which is the normal idea of a constituent assembly. [What we will do is] like what is done in passing [regular] laws. But the approval needs at least 2/3 votes of the members of both houses voting separately),” said Angara in a radio interview.

Sen. Robin Padilla, who is the chairperson of the Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes, welcomed Zubiri’s filing of RBH No. 6, saying this proves that he was on the right track when his committee filed a report in March 2023 on the proposed amendments to the 1987 Constitution.

The Padilla report, however, was not tackled in plenary since no senator signed it.

LIMITED CHA-CHA

Angara assured the public that only the economic provisions sought to be amended under RBH No. 6 will be discussed during the discussions and exclude other proposals.

“Hindi naman po papayagan ng mga senador dahil pirmi kami na ang pag-uusapan lamang dito sa tatlong pag-uusapan ay tungkol pa rin sa economic provisions (The senators will not allow that because we will stick to the economic provisions of the Constitution),” he added.

Gatchalian echoed that “only the economic provisions will be tackled and debated.”

“We will not talk about political aspects as what is being flaunted by some congressmen to lure LGUs to gather signatures for the PI (people’s initiative),” he said.

Sen. Francis Tolentino said he wants to include in the discussions on economic provisions his proposal to allow foreigners to explore resources jointly with the Philippines at the West Philippines Sea.

“This is to develop and exploit our resources in the WPS because we do not have enough resources to explore them,” Tolentino said in a press conference.

He said the constitutional provision limiting foreign ownership of businesses in the country should be eased as he pushed that foreign investors be allowed to own as much as 80 percent of joint ventures so that the resources in WPS can be explored.

Sen. Imee Marcos urged senators and the public to be vigilant “against surreptitious insertions that will expand the scope of the amendments beyond economic provisions.”

Marcos said she believes that there is no need for a Cha-cha since new measures can cure the flaws in some provisions of the Constitution.

“Maaari naman palang isabatas bakit pa magpi-Pi? Tatlong beses ginawa ‘yan ni President Duterte — retail trade, public services at ‘yung ipinaglaban kong Foreign Investments Act. Walang ginastos na P14 billion, walang panunuhol sa botante, walang bastusang PI ang kailangan (Flaws can be remedied through laws so why the PI campaign? This was done three times by former President Duterte — in the Retail Trade Act, Public Services Act, and the Foreign Investments Act which I fought for. The government did not spend P14 billion, there are no bribery, no nothing),” she said.

PEOPLE’S INITIATIVE

Meanwhile, Marcos said efforts to solicit signatures for the PI campaign as she cited reports that contractors of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) are now gathering the signatures.

“Hindi naman tumigil. Ngayon, DPWH contractors ang nagpapapirma. Lie low naman daw muna ang mga congressmen and mayors (It has not stopped. Now, DPWH contractors are gathering the signatures after congressmen and mayors have reportedly laid low),” she said.

Marcos said she still needs to get more details on the information.

Likewise, Marcos said the Senate committee investigation on the alleged buying of signatures should still be held even if the President has already instructed the Senate leadership to take the lead in reviewing the economic provisions of the Charter.

Marcos has filed a resolution urging the Senate to investigate the alleged buying of signatures for the PI campaign.

Marcos said now that the President has spoken, the PI drive should come to an end.

At the same time, Marcos said she also intends to unmask who is behind the PI and how P14 billion made its way to the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) budget for this year, which she insisted is for Cha-cha. The poll body has earlier denied this.

Marcos said she and Angara, who is the chairperson of the Committee on Finance, were unaware of the P14 billion when she defended the Comelec’s budget during the floor deliberations.

“Kung sinong nagsingit niya dapat patawan ng parusa, at sa lalong madaling panahon ibalik sa kaban ng bayan ‘yang minagic na P14 billion na yan (Whoever did that that should be punished, and the amount should be returned to the government’s coffers as soon as possible),” she said.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa yesterday said the Department of Health (DOH) will not allow its Medical Assistance for Indigent Patients (MAIP) program to be used for extralegal activities saying it is only meant to help in the hospitalization needs of the people.

In a press conference, Herbosa said he will be the first to oppose such activities, wherein the MAIP will be offered as an incentive to those that will support Cha-Cha.

“If this will be used for Charter Change, I will be the first to protest it because that is not the intention of the program. The allocation for that is for medical assistance, and not for charter change,” said Herbosa.

This was seconded by DOH Undersecretary Eric Tayag, who said they are even prepared to run after those who will make an unauthorized use of the program.

“We are ready to receive information and reports, and we will have them verified and forwarded to authorities. As we have stated, this will not be tolerated,” said Tayag.

Earlier, Marcos claimed that government aid programs, including DOH’s MAIP, are being used by those behind the PI drive for Cha-Cha.

But according to Herbosa, it would be impossible to use the program to incentivize signatories to the people’s initiative since it can only be availed if one is confined in a hospital.

“This cannot be easily given in exchange of supporting Charter Change. One needs to be admitted in hospitals. The money is not directly given to the people,” he explained, adding: “I cannot understand how one can use the MAIP as incentive to those supporting Charter Change.”

Under DOH Administrative Order 2023-0016, the MAIP is intended to provide financial aid to indigent Filipinos needing medical assistance in hospitals and health facilities as assessed by licensed social workers.

Last year alone, the DOH said they have spent more than P22 billion to help 3.5 million indigent patients.

For 2024, Herbosa said the DOH has been allocated P58 billion for the MAIP program. — With Raymond Africa and Gerard Naval

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