Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon. INQUIRER.net file photo / CATHY MIRANDA
MANILA, Philippines — The non-mention of federalism and Charter Change (Cha-cha) in President Rodrigo Duterte’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) means that Cha-Cha has already been “laid to rest,” Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Tuesday.
The senator said Duterte’s silence on Cha-cha and federalism during his Sona on Monday “speaks volumes.”
“For me, the non-inclusion of federalism indicates that the Cha-cha was laid to rest yesterday. The Sona became Cha-cha’s ‘final resting place,’” Drilon said in a statement.
In an interview with reporters after his Sona, the President said it was “not the proper time” to discuss Cha-Cha or federalism.
This, Drilon said, indicates that the President conceded that Cha-cha will not happen during his term.
“Hence, those who have plans to revive it this 18th Congress should better think twice. It will be an exercise in futility,” the senator said.
Federalism and Cha-cha are among Duterte’s top campaign promises during the 2016 elections.
READ: Duterte leaves federalism to next President
In December last year, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading its draft federal Charter but the same proposal fails to get the approval of the Senate.
The draft charter seeks the establishment of a two-party system, where the President and Vice President would be elected in tandem, both with a four-year term subject to one re-election. /jpv
READ: Draft federal Charter gets House’s final nod
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