Presidential bets back passage of law against turncoatism

The presidential candidates who took part in Comelec’s second debate.

Updated @ 10:42 p.m., April 3, 2022

MANILA, Philippines — The presidential bets who took part in the second debate organized by the Commission on Elections on Sunday raised the need to have a law addressing the issue of turncoatism.

Vice President Leni Robredo said moving from one political party to another is a problem that “weakens the political party system.”

“We see that the candidate running now no longer look at what their party is fighting for,” Robredo said in Filipino. “It’s always for political convenience. They follow political convenience,”

“So, for me, we need to pass a law that will forbid this because it will help strengthen our political parties,” she pointed out.

She added that candidates would then be forced to join parties based on its principles.

De Guzman echoed Robredo’s statement.

“There should really be clear law for these political butterflies here in the Philippines so that the the political system of the court would have a strong platform or foundation to stand on,” he said.

“One reservation I have about that as of now is that politicians keep shifting because most of our parties have only one agenda. The parties don’t unite or strengthen the marginalized masses of Filipinos, and that’s where I think each Filipino should draw the line,” the labor leader added.

For former Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales, the word “party” should be clearly defined.

“It’s so easy for our politicians to shift parties because they don’t understand what ‘party’ means. They don’t bother about that, especially during an election. They are just electoral campaign machinery. Where they will win that’s where they will go,” Gonzales said

Electing party-list representatives

Meanwhile, lawyer and physician Jose Montemayor Jr., Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, and businessman Faisal Mangondato were questioned if the system of electing party-list representatives should be reformed or abolished.

“Let us not remove the party-list system. But let us return to the original definition and intent of the framers of the Constitution. What is that? Underrepresented, not necessarily marginalized, Montemayor said, noting that 77 percent of the party-list representatives are rich.

Moreno agreed that the party-list system should go on.

“But we have to put safeguards — whether through the empowerment of Comelec or distinguishing membership of the party list or their representation or nominees,” the mayor said, adding that it was “high time” to revert to the two-party system.

For Mangondato, on the other hand, the party-list system should be abolished.

“It has always been said that there are many problems in our country’s system, especially in politics. That is why the party-list system should be abolished and changed to a new system of federalism,” he said.

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/MUF /ATM