House Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (Photo by GABRIEL PABICO LALU /INQUIRER.net)
Newly-installed Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Wednesday said the House of Representatives would continue to prioritize the proposed Charter change as drafted by the Consultative Committee formed by President Rodrigo Duterte.
But since the House had already passed a resolution convening Congress into a constituent assembly (Con-ass), she said the ball was now on the Senate’s court.
“It’s a priority, of course. But right now we’re also done with the House resolution to call a constituent assembly so it requires two Houses, so the ball is in the Senate,” Arroyo told reporters.
As early as January 18, the lower chamber already adopted House Concurrent Resolution No. 9, convening Congress into a constituent assembly to amend the 1987 Constitution, enabling the country to shift to a federal form of government.
While the House has already made its move, charter change efforts remain pending in Senate.
Senators are also united that, once they convene as a constituent assembly, both chambers should vote separately instead of jointly, as proposed by the House.
READ: House adopts resolution convening Congress as constituent assembly
The Con-com, meanwhile, has completed its task of preparing a draft federal charter.
Former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez had earlier received a copy of the draft federal constitution from Con-com, which is led by former Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Arroyo also bared that, during her meeting with PDP-Laban members earlier in the day, they discussed how to carry out the President’s legislative agenda.
“I repeated what I said that our job is to carry out the legislative agenda of President Rodrigo Duterte, and as I said, looking at the legislative agenda that he talked about in his Sona, number one was the Coconut Farmers Fund, we’re done with that. It’s in the Senate,” she said.
“Number two, the Land Use Act. We’re done with that. It’s in the Senate. Number three is the Disaster Management Department. I’ve looked through where it is. It is still in the technical working group,” she added. /atm
READ: LOOK: Arroyo, Alvarez meet for the first time after House leadership row
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