Congress urged: Ban close kin from joining con-con if House Cha-cha bid prevails
MANILA, Philippines — If the bid of the House of Representatives for Charter change via constitutional convention (con-con) prevails, “close relatives” of Congress members should be banned from running as delegates, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said on Monday.
Playing along with the assumption that the move to revise the 1987 Constitution will push through, Pimentel – a lawyer – said the “most practical” mode would be through a constituent assembly (con-ass).
But if the preferred mode of the House is favored, he sought to make clear that lawmakers’ close kin will not be allowed in the body proposing reforms to the constitution.
In the lower chamber, a bill has been passed to implement the Resolution of Both Houses No. 6, which calls for a “hybrid” constitutional convention to pitch changes to the 36-year-old Charter.
READ: House passes bill to implement RBH No. 6 for creation of con-con to amend charter
This would be composed of elected and appointed con-con delegates. The latter, according to the resolution, would be selected by the House Speaker and the Senate President.
READ: House okays charter change via constitutional convention
“Let’s assume na iyon ang mananaig na procedure on amending the constitution or revising the constitution, we have to make sure. We have to put that in. We just define what close relatives are–close relatives of the legislators. Lahat should be disqualified from running as a constitutional convention delegate. Dapat ganoon,” Pimentel said over ABS-CBN News’ Headstart.
(Let’s assume that the procedure on amending or revising the constitution will prevail, so we have to make sure. We have to put that in. We just define what close relatives are – close relatives of the legislators. All of them should be disqualified from running as constitutional convention delegates. It should be like that.)
Pimentel also underscored the need to “simplify the rules” of holding a con-con.
READ: House okays charter change via constitutional convention
“They have also made it more complicated, because con-con for me, should be representatives of the people who the people determine through elections. If we make it a so-called hybrid, you again complicate the topic, because there are appointed [members]. So the [appointees] can represent vested interests. That’s a problem,” he said.
Should constitutional reform via con-con be pursued, he pressed for the body to be composed of purely elected delegates with no close relatives of lawmakers.
The legislator then reiterated his stance that Charter change is not needed now. And if a push for such is seen in the future, he said he will seek changes with the end goal of federalism in the Philippines.
“Number one, ang dami nating problema na pwede natin sagutin o i-address through laws. And number two, iyong subject matter ng aking adbokasiya sa Charter change ay federalism, kailangan pang pahinugin sa taong bayan. Kailangan pang ipaliwanag. Siguro that’s why we are patient about it,” he further noted.
(Number one, we have so many problems that can be answered or addressed through laws. And number two, the subject matter of my Charter change advocacy is federalism, which is a concept that still needs to be fully developed for the people. It needs to be further explained. And maybe that’s why we are patient about it.)
The proposal to amend or revise the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution has already secured an overwhelming boost from the House, but its chances of success in the Senate are seemingly dim with not enough members in support of the bid.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri earlier revealed that around half of the senators he had spoken to were opposing constitutional reform, especially after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared it not a priority of his administration.
