Bicol solons call for end to Senate inquiry into People’s Initiative

Camarines Sur 2nd District Rep. LRay Villafuerte

MANILA, Philippines–National Unity Party (NUP) president LRay Villafuerte and other lawmakers from Bicol have urged the Senate to cease its investigation into the suspended People’s Initiative (PI) and focus on approving a bill to remove restrictive economic provisions in the Constitution before Congress’ Holy Week recess.

The inquiry, the legislators who support Speaker Martin Romualdez say, violates the principle of inter-parliamentary courtesy inherent in a bicameral legislature.

“The current Senate hearings on the PI process initiated by private groups long yearning for Charter change, in which the House of Representatives and its leaderships have surprisingly and unfortunately become the subject of the inquiry, contravene inter-parliamentary courtesy and reek of undue interference by members of one chamber in the official acts of legislators belonging to the other,” Villafuerte said.

He emphasized that the investigative actions of the Senate against members of the House breach the mutual respect and civility expected in the bicameral setup of the Philippine Congress.

Villafuerte, representing Camarines Sur’s second legislative district, along with fellow representatives Miguel “Migz” Luis Villafuerte, Tsuyoshi Anthony Horibata, and Bicol Saro Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan, believe ending the Senate inquiry would demonstrate a commitment to jointly advancing constitutional reform, particularly RHB 6.

RHB 6, which aims to lift economic restrictions in the Constitution, was unanimously passed by the House in March 2023.

Senate President Juan Miguel ‘Migz’ Zubiri, following discussions with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Charter change, announced the formation of a subcommittee chaired by Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara to review amendments to the economic provisions, with work starting this February. Zubiri expressed intentions to pass RHB 6 before the legislative break.

The call to halt the Senate’s investigation reflects the House’s desire for a collaborative effort to enact significant economic reforms, setting a positive legislative environment for the passage of constitutional reform bills by both chambers, ideally before the Lenten recess.