Zubiri: Amend only certain provisions to avert constitutional crisis

FILE PHOTO: Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri —SENATE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — To avert a “constitutional crisis”  between both chambers of Congress, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said he opted to file a measure that seeks to amend only specific provisions of the country’s highest law.

The Senate chief disclosed this prior filing Resolution of Both Houses No. 6 on Monday.

“This is to avert a constitutional crisis between the House of Representatives and the Senate and to make it clear that there are no other planned provisions or amendments on any other thing but purely economic in nature,” Zubiri told reporters.

Under the measure, amendments to the following provisions of the 1987 Constitution were proposed:

• Section 11 Article 12 (National Patrimony and Economy)
• Paragraph 2 Section 4 of Article 14 (Education, Science and Technology, Arts, Culture, and Sports)
• Paragraph 2 Section 11 of Article 16 (General Provisions – Advertising)

“Tatatlo lang ang topic dito and napaka simple, napaka linaw — so ito ay gagawin natin para sa ganon ay we preserve the bicameralism of both the House of Representatives and the Senate,” Zubiri emphasized.

(There are only three topics here, and they are very simple and very clear — so we will do this to preserve the bicameralism of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.)

READ: Bongbong Marcos asks Senate to lead review of economic provisions

The Senate chief said he hopes that House Speaker Martin Romualdez would do the same, repeating that it is necessary to avert what he called a Constitutional crisis.

READ: Senate to review proposals to amend Charter’s economic provisions

Romualdez earlier claimed that Zubiri would support moves to amend the Constitution through people’s initiative.

Zubiri, however, maintained that the proposal subject of the people’s initiative could have led to a constitutional crisis, “destabilizing bicameralism and upsetting the system.”

“While the Senate is vehemently opposed to a dilution of its participation in the task of reviewing the Constitution, we exercised all restraint, because in any conflict, it is always the people who stand to suffer the most,” said Zubiri in a press conference on Monday.