House to form 12 states in federal bid

MAJORITY Floor Leader Rodolfo Fariñas said the House leadership is mulling over increasing the number of deputy speakers in Congress as an initial test toward a federal form of government.

In an interview with reporters on Thursday, Fariñas raised the possibility of trying out a federal form of government within the halls of Congress by dividing the 290 representatives into 12 states led by their respective deputy speakers.

The Ilocos Norte representative said the 260 lawmakers belonging to the majority coalition in the House of Representatives are amenable to the idea of dividing Congress into 12 states.

“The leaders have discussed that since the thrust of the Duterte administration is into federalism, we look at the possible creation of the states that will become federal states. They came up with 12. So we thought perhaps you could try if it’s viable in the House first,” Fariñas said.

“We divide ourselves into 12, like states, and then politically we will see the grouping…That’s why the (deputy) speakers consulted with all the members. All parties were represented. And it seems like they favor that we do division of our political boundaries,” he said.

Fariñas said that upon consultation with Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, the latter recommended to try out with three deputy speakers first representing the major island groups Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The 12 states Fariñas mentioned would come from the existing regions that divide the country: Northern Luzon for Regions I, II and III and Cordillera Administrative Region; Central Luzon; Metro Manila; Southern Tagalog; Bicol; Western Visayas; Eastern Visayas; Central Visayas; Northern Mindanao; Western Mindanao; Southern Mindanao, and Bangsamoro.

Fariñas said the Mimaropa region or Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Palawan and Romblon provinces may be merged with the Visayas island group.

Fariñas said Mindanao lawmakers are proposing increasing the regions in Mindanao to five. Other solons also insist on maintaining the administrative regions.

Despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to abolish the party-list system in the new Constitution, Fariñas said party-list lawmakers representing the concerns of sectors and regional groups may also be considered in the mix of federal states within Congress.

The creation of federal states would increase the number of deputy speakers on top of these five deputy speakers chosen to represent the different political parties in Congress: Ilocos Sur Rep. Eric Singson, Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan; Batangas Rep. Raneo Abu, Nacionalista Party; Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro, National Unity Party; Marikina Rep. Romero Quimbo, Liberal Party, and Negros Occidental Rep. Mercedes Alvarez, Nationalist People’s Coalition.

Duterte had called for a major constitutional revision to pave the way for a shift to a federal from a unitary form of government, in his bid to decentralize powers of the state to the provinces from the so-called “Imperial Manila.”

The president had also called for the constituent assembly as a mode of Charter change, under which it would be Congress convening in an assembly which would propose amendments to the Charter.