‘Hindi nakaka-flatten ng curve’: Senators hit ‘rev-gov’ calls

MANILA, Philippines — More senators are opposing calls to establish a revolutionary government, with one lawmaker saying that it was “yet another distraction” from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

“Hindi dapat seryosohin ang panawagan para sa revolutionary government,” Senator Risa Hontiveros wrote on Twitter on Monday.

Hindi dapat seryosohin ang panawagan para sa revolutionary government. This is yet another distraction from the real crisis we are facing today, w/c is the coronavirus pandemic.

The public needs good healthcare & jobs, & that requires GOOD GOVERNANCE, not a so-called “rev-gov.”

— risa hontiveros (@risahontiveros) August 24, 2020

(Calls for a revolutionary government should not be taken seriously.)

“This is yet another distraction from the real crisis we are facing today, which is the coronavirus pandemic,” she added.

Hontiveros issued this statement after a group called Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte-National Executive Coordinating Committee (MRRD-NECC) launched a movement calling for a revolutionary government led by the Duterte administration which would fast-track federalism.

But the opposition senator stressed that the country, which has so far recorded over 189,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases, does not need a revolutionary government.

“The public needs good healthcare and jobs, and that requires GOOD GOVERNANCE, not a so-called ‘rev-gov’,” Hontiveros added.

Senator Nancy Binay also took to Twitter to thumb down calls for a revolutionary government.

“Hindi nakaka-flatten ng curve ang RevGov,” Binay said in a tweet on Sunday.

(That will not flatten the curve.)

Hindi nakaka flatten ng curve ang RevGov 😷 #noTOREvGov #yestotheConstitution

— Senator Nancy Binay (@SenatorBinay) August 23, 2020

Other senators and Vice President Leni Robredo also opposed efforts being made to establish a revolutionary government.

READ: Pangilinan to Malacañang: Stop bid to establish revolutionary government

Robredo branded this as “nonsense” and “illegal” while Senator Joel Villanueva urged the government to charge its proponents.

“This call for a revolutionary government is dangerous and amounts to inciting to sedition under the Revised Penal Code,” Villanueva said, referring to Article 142 of the code.

“This is an illegal act and the government should ensure that the perpetrators are charged,” he added.

Even Malacañang said that the Duterte administration is focused on addressing the pandemic amid efforts made to establish a revolutionary government.

JE