MANILA, Philippines—Several resolutions being peddled in the House of Representatives calling for Charter change reek of "treachery," intending to cut short the process of amending the Constitution, a militant lawmaker said on Tuesday.
Gabriela party list Representative Liza Maza was referring to House Resolution 737 of Speaker Prospero Nograles and the unreleased resolution of Camarines Sur Representative Luis Villafuerte calling for a constituent assembly to amend the Charter.
HR 737, which has so far gathered 163 signatures, seeks to amend the Constitution’s economic provision. Villafuerte's resolution has 167 signatures to date.
"On its face, they are being peddled as resolutions calling for economic provisions, saying they will go through the regular process and are seducing congressmen to sign to get the three-fourths signature of the House membership, but I think the intention is to do a fast run,” Maza said in an interview after the hearing of the constitutional amendments committee on Tuesday.
“They will approve it in plenary and tell the opposition to just raise the matter to the Supreme Court, that's why it's treacherous," Maza said.
Cebu Representative Pablo Garcia acknowledged that because of the "grey area" in the Constitution on the separate or joint vote by members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, Charter change proponents can try to engage in "constitutional brinkmanship" in amending the 1987 Constitution.
"At this point, we have followed the road that is often taken, resolutions are filed then referred to the committee. … Along the way, these resolutions will gather more signatures to constitute three-fourths of the combined membership of Congress, it might take the road less traveled and assume the character or the act of a constituent assembly," Garcia told the committee during the hearing.
Cagayan de Oro Representative Rufus Rodriguez said that the while the Constitution is silent on voting separately or jointly, he said "the fundamental tenet is bicameralism over unicameralism" and thus it should not be construed that three-fourths of the House membership means addition of the membership of the Senate and the House.
Villafuerte's resolution intends to gather up to 197 signatures to represent three-fourths of the combined number (262) of the House (238) and Senate (24) and force the Supreme Court to rule on whether the 1987 Constitution had intended that Congress vote either as one or separately in amending the Charter through a constituent assembly.
But the minority bloc has launched a countermove to gather at least 66 signatures to ensure that the Kampi initiative does not push through. The minority filed House Resolution 888 opposing Charter change before the May 2010 elections, including the convening of Congress into a constituent assembly.
