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Saturday, March 18, 2006
Mayor chided on republic moves
By Danilo V. Adorador III
MINDANAO Republic? There's a way to achieve this in a legal, bloodless way, an opposition lawyer said Friday even as he rebuked Cagayan de Oro Mayor Vicente Emano for sponsoring secessionist ideas.
While he shares the view that an independent Mindanao guarantees peace and development, former vice mayor Antonio Soriano said achieving economic and political parity with "Imperial Manila" could be done under a federal type of government.
Federalism is a form of government in which the Philippines would be divided into states with their respective constitutions, laws, and autonomy but united by a federal constitution.
Soriano said this is much like the political set-up of the US, though the federal-parliamentary system tends to be more favored by administration lawmakers.
Geographically, the Philippines is so divided into numerous islands that a central government is ineffective in rendering basic services to its constituents, Soriano noted.
In many studies done on the economic abilities of Mindanao, almost 90 percent of the resources of Mindanao both in revenues and production go to Imperial Manila, allotting only about 15 percent back to Mindanao, he said.
But he warned that pursuing Charter change to overhaul the current system must commence only when the issues surrounding the legitimacy of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
"What is so bothering currently is that any constitutional discourse and changes is tied down to the political survival of the President. Many of our statesmen have been wooed to support the charter changes in exchange for major decisive favors," Soriano observed.
"I believe that Arroyo's stay in power must be resolve first before we can move on to lobby for a federal system of government," he said.
Emano has recently confirmed alliance with Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte in holding exploratory talks on the island's independence with other Mindanao leaders.
Under these series of talks, Emano said all sectors, including police and military, would be invited.
But some sectors questioned the timing of Emano and Duterte's calls, saying the moves are nothing but precipitate response to counter demands for Arroyo to step down. Both Emano and Duterte are administration allies.
Renewed calls to sever the island from the rest of the country coincided with Arroyo's near-downfall last month, after plots to unseat her on the eve of the 20th Edsa celebration was uncovered.
With such repeated scenes of power-grab under the backdrop of "endless" political bickering in the national arena, Emano said, Mindanao leaders like him and the tough-talking Duterte are getting hopeless that Mindanao could move forward toward development.
(March 18, 2006 issue)
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