BY RAYMOND AFRICA and WENDELL VIGILIA
LEADERS of both houses of Congress have agreed to discuss in an executive session issues related to proposals to amend the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri announced yesterday.
The decision was a consensus between Zubiri and House Speaker Martin Romualdez, a move that preempted the attendance of Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez in the hearing of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes that was scheduled yesterday.
Sen. Robinhood Padilla, who is the committee chairman, had invited Rodriguez as a resource person to discuss Resolution of Both Houses No. 6 and House Bill No. 7352, which both laid down the technical details for the convening of a constitutional convention (con-con) to tackle Charter changes and which have already been approved by the House of Representatives.
Rodriguez is the chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments.
Zubiri said he and Romualdez agreed on Sunday to sit down and thresh out the two chambers’ different stance on Charter amendments in response to the call of Rep. Elpidio Barzaga “for a ceasefire on the heated discussions on Charter Change, calling instead for the leadership of both houses of Congress to hold a caucus, where we can have a productive discussion on the matter, rather than have everyone airing their grievances in public.”
Romualdez said Zubiri has “personally assured me that he will keep an open mind on the move by the House of Representatives to institute economic reforms through constitutional amendments.”
“I trust that other senators will continue to join SP Migz in keeping their mind open on amending restrictive economic provisions of the Constitution,” said the Speaker. “He informed me that the Senate is awaiting for the report of their committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes chaired by Sen. Robinhood Padilla, for appropriate plenary action.”
The private meeting among lawmakers will be held after the Holy Week break, the Senate chief said.
While the House has been actively pushing for amendments to the economic provisions of the Charter to open up the economy to foreign investors, majority of the senators, including Zubiri, has said that Cha-cha is not a priority of the upper chamber, especially since it is not among the priority measures agreed among lawmakers and Malacañang.
INTERPARLIAMENTARY COURTESY
Zubiri said he and Romualdez both agreed that interparliamentary courtesy should be observed by the two houses.
He said he asked Padilla to postpone his “invitation to our representatives as resource persons” since tradition and practice dictates that “the Senate does not invite incumbent members of Congress as resource persons, as they are accorded interparliamentary courtesy, being members of a co-equal branch of legislation.”
“We usually invite representatives as guests, not resource persons, particularly on discussions of local bills,” he explained.
He clarified the Senate leadership is not trying to stop the Cha-cha committee hearings, stressing that he and Romualdez “are only hewing to longstanding traditions” that “interparliamentary courtesy should be respected.”
“This tradition is to protect him (Padilla) and his committee as well, as we want to avoid a scenario in which conflicting opinions and heated arguments may take place, putting the chairperson in a bind, particularly on how to rule on such discussions,” Zubiri said.
Zubiri said Padilla, being a “neophyte” senator, may not yet be fully knowledgeable of the traditions and practices in Congress.
COMMITTEE HEARING
Before Zubiri issued his statement, Padilla answered queries from the media as to why there were only two resource persons who attended yesterday’s hearing — former senator Francisco Tatad and Melvin Matibag, secretary general of the PDP-Laban Cusi-faction.
Padilla is pushing for the constitutional assembly (con-ass) mode to amend the Constitution.
Padilla said Monday’s committee hearing should have been an exchange of differing ideas on con-ass and con-con.
“Malungkot ako na hindi natuloy kasi gusto ko magbakbakan eh. Ito talaga hinihintay ko. Para po sa sakin, ang mga ganitong issue talaga, gusto ko marinig ng taumbayan. Pero siyempre bago ako dito sa pagiging mambabatas, kailangan sumunod ako (I am sad that the committee hearing was postponed because I want a healthy exchange of ideas. This is what I have been waiting for. For me, I want the public to hear the differing opinions about this issue. But since I am new in lawmaking, I need to follow),” Padilla said.
Rodriguez said the Senate did not even tell him why his appearance before Padilla’s committee was cancelled.
“I am disappointed. After inviting me last March 14, I received last night (Sunday night) a notice of cancellation from the Senate committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes. I was already prepared go to the Senate today (Monday) at 10 a.m. to present to the senators the basis of our RBH 6 and HB 7352 which were all data-driven, evidence-based and future-proof,” he said in a statement.
Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte urged Zubiri to allow Padilla to continue with his meeting with House Cha-cha proponents, insisting it should be held in public instead of behind closed doors in the interest of full transparency.
“We are suggesting to Senate President Migz (Zubiri) to allow Sen. Robin (Padilla) and con-con proponents in the House led by Rep. Rufus (Rodriguez) to meet, as originally planned, in a public hearing this week in the interest of full transparency,” said Villafuerte, who is one of the lead authors of HB 7352, which is meant to be the implementing law for RBH 6 on the establishment of a con-con to work on amending the restrictive economic provisions of the 1987 Charter.
“The last thing we need is to hold such a meeting behind closed doors, which is the apparent preference of the Senate President, as such a secretive engagement would not afford our people a golden opportunity to hear from our senators and House members the pros and cons of constitutional reform, and which between the con-con and con-ass is the better route to tweaking our 36-year-old Charter,” he said.
Villafuerte said holding a closed-door session “would only fuel further a misplaced public suspicion that lawmakers advocating constitutional reform to rid the Constitution of its economic provisions that have long impeded the inrush of FDI (foreign direct investment) flows have a hidden political agenda behind this revived initiative for a Charter makeover.”
He pointed out that there would not be any breach of interparliamentary courtesy if Rodriguez and other House members would be made to attend a public hearing because they would be attending voluntarily.
There would only be a violation of interparliamentary courtesy if a Senate committee would compel any House member to attend its public hearing, said Villafuerte, who recalled that he himself had attended a Senate hearing presided over by then-Sen. Panfilo Lacson.
For Villafuerte, it is beside the point now on whether senators are to vote for a measure proposing con-ass or con-con, because “what is truly important is to keep the ball rolling on constitutional reforms in hopes for the 19th Congress to pass a measure on Charter Change at the soonest time possible.”
“We are hoping that our senators will make a decision while there is still enough time to introduce amendments to the Constitution. We will respect whatever action our senators will take. If it turns out that constitutional reform has no majority support, then let’s leave it at that,” he said.
RESIGN
Padilla said he will resign as a member of the PDP-Laban if the party will not support his push for Cha-cha.
“Sobrang sakit ang mararamdaman ko pagka ang partido ko na naniniwala sa Charter change at federalism ay magsasabi sa akin na hindi nila susuportahan ito. Kung sasabihin sa akin ng partido bukas na huwag suportahan ang Cha-cha, sa araw na ‘yan resign na ako at independent na ako (I will be hurt if my party, which believes in Charter change and federalism, will tell me that it will not support this [Cha-cha]. If my party will tell me tomorrow that it will not support Cha-cha, I will immediately resign and I will become an independent),” he said.
