It seems that President Rodrigo Duterte in the eyes of Filipinos can do no wrong. We also suffer that most peculiar American religion, “President-worship”. Some Filipinos actually believe that the President was "chosen" by God to bring judgement to an unfaithful people. The President spoke recently about charter change, but it is quite difficult to understand the exact meaning of this statement, "Kaya it’s not for me, in my generation, somebody else’s. But you should change the Constitution actually. Not for anything. If you do not want federalism, fine. But change the Constitution that would really change this nation. Sabihin ko sa inyo," Or this statement which he conveyed to the incoming leaders of the House of Representatives, “We have to change the Constitution, whether federal or whatnot”. Should we then expect the call for the convening of a Constituent Assembly (Con-Ass) in his coming State of the Nation Address? Maybe. The President can … [Read more...] about OPINION: Charter Change the right way
Charter change
Drilon: Senators shun charter change talk for now
MANILA -- There are "no discussions" so far on efforts to rewrite the Constitution, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Tuesday, as lawmakers prepared to resume sessions in late July. Based on past legislative hearings, the public believes that lawmakers should not be at the forefront of charter change, Drilon told DZMM. Midway into his 6-year term, President Rodrigo Duterte has yet to deliver on his campaign promise to shift to a federal form of government to spread resources and political power to the countryside. "Wala pong pinaguusapan. Noong nakaraang Kongreso mayroong maraming public hearings tungkol sa pagbabago ng Saligang Batas. Ang pulso ng taumbayan ay wag niyo nang galawin yan," he told radio DZMM. (There are no discussions. In the previous Congress, we held public hearings regarding the amendment of the Constitution. The public has decided not to change it.) "Kung galawin niyo man, wag yung Kongreso ang gumalaw ng Saligang Batas at yan po ang sentiment na aming … [Read more...] about Drilon: Senators shun charter change talk for now
OPINION: No more federalism, only charter change
I have always insisted, there is no such thing as bobotante. In the first place, if there are and they really are such, then we or those matalinotante (or intelligent voters or those who think they make an intelligent voter) most likely the educated, even monied people, including of course many of our political leaders, are in fact worst. We are all part of the whole system, bobotante or not we suffer from corruption, incompetent leadership, insensitivity or overall a generally non-performing government. And yet we are not doing anything of significance to address this, we are not going out of our way to educate the bobotante and if we are not doing that, we surely would not even consider looking at how the system could be reformed. There’s simply nothing worst than blaming the people for whatever bad happens in government, especially when they make a different, unexpected choice. You curse, sulk, scheme, but do nothing, did nothing of significance when you had the … [Read more...] about OPINION: No more federalism, only charter change
House to discuss charter change, budget
One of the first MPs to propose amending the charter, U Aung Kyi Nyunt is the National League for Democracy (NLD) MP in the Amyotha Hluttaw (Upper House) for Magwe Region’s constituency 4. The hluttaw’s 13th regular session, which begins on July 15, is expected to continue the work on amending the 2008 Constitution that began in the 11th regular session. There are two approaches to amending the charter – one is to submit them to a 45-member joint committee comprised mostly of NLD members, and the other is led by the opposition Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). The committee has compiled suggestions from each party and group for ways to amend the charter, but U Aung Kyi Nyunt wouldn’t say how many they received or what they were. Committee member U Aung Kyaw Zan of the Arakan National Party (ANP) said on March 18 that the NLD suggested reducing the number of Tatmadaw (military) MPs on a yearly basis. It proposed reducing the … [Read more...] about House to discuss charter change, budget
Opposition takes charter change campaign to public
THE anti-junta camp chose the 87th anniversary of the Siamese Revolution yesterday to kick off its campaign for amendments to the junta-sponsored Constitution, vowing to make it democratic for the benefit of the country and the people. A working group has been formed to campaign among the public to push for amendments to the current “undemocratic” Constitution, a politician from the opposition Puea Chart Party said yesterday. Ketpreeya Kaewsanmuang, the spokesperson for the Puea Chart Party, said the campaign was launched yesterday to coincide with the establishment of the democratic Thai state and the promulgation of the country’s first charter on June 24, 1932. She said the opposition bloc’s goal was to amend the Constitution, written after the military coup of May 2014, to “make it democratic for the maximum benefit of the country and the people”. The politician also reminded that when King Prajadhipok abdicated following the Siamese … [Read more...] about Opposition takes charter change campaign to public