Wednesday, December 06, 2006 Carvajal: Prescription for disaster By Orlando P. Carvajal Break Point
President Arroyo, Joe de V. and the administration-controlled Congress know that Charter change is a critical move that can make or break this nation. It, therefore, cannot be rushed without courting disaster.
They know the nation is divided on the very issue itself of whether we need Charter change or not. They also know that those for charter change are further divided on what changes should be made. It will take time to get the nation’s consensus on the changes we need in our Constitution, a time we have to take because the revised Constitution, if it is to be helpful, must unite us and not further divide us.
PGMA and company are also well aware that people are divided on how to bring about Charter change. The way of the people’s initiative has been rejected for being hasty and deceptive. Now, even as administration congressmen prepare to form themselves into a constituent assembly, the opposition and the rest of the country are preparing to protest against it with the Supreme Court or in the streets. We just do not want any of their machinations.
What is left is a constitutional convention of delegates elected by the people who would draft a revised charter and present it in a plebiscite to the people for ratification. Considering the gravity of this country’s structural problems, aggravated by an amoral political culture, this would seem to be the judicious, sane and responsible way to proceed for people who have the country’s good at the heart of their social action agenda.
But that’s just it. President Arroyo, Joe de V. and company are not perceived as having the country’s good at heart. The message should be clear to them that people who want Charter change do not want it coming from them. Their motives are suspect and they know it. They rushed the people’s initiative and now a constituent assembly because they want Charter change just to save their necks.
They can ill afford the slow and tedious process of a constitutional convention. But it is precisely because they are pushing for Charter change any which speedy way to save their political necks that many of us feel we can use their Charter change like a hole in the head. One could also say that their cup of revitalizing political tea is the rest of the country’s poison.
Whatever they come up with is a prescription for disaster since their main consideration is not the good of this nation but political self-preservation. They will not care if they mangled the Constitution, and mangle it they will, since they’re only interested in postponing election so PGMA can serve her full term without fear of another impeachment and Joe de V. can have one more shot at glory as prime minister.
