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Friday, April 28, 2006
Government cannot call off Charter change train: Arroyo aide
PRESS Secretary Ignacio Bunye said Thursday it would already be difficult to postpone or halt the Charter change train due to the continued degeneration of the country's political system.
Bunye, who is also the Presidential spokesman, said while they respect the move of El Shaddai leader Brother Mike Velarde to gather signatures to stop the Charter change moves and the issuance of a 20-day temporary restraining order (TRO) by a Roxas City court to stop verification of the signatures gathered from the Western Visayas region, he believes that more people are supporting the proposed changes in government system.
He is hopeful that the court, while its issuance of a TRO is part of the country's democratic processes, would eventually see that the people's initiative is a legal means provided by the Constitution and in time "uphold the right of the advocates of people's initiative."
"The upgrade of our political system and the transformation of our society can no longer be postponed since the welfare and well being of our present and future generations are at stake. We shall continue to listen to all sensible and sincere views and take stock of these, but the die has been cast on the course we have to take for the national interest," he said.
Bunye said it has been the administration's view that only through Charter change can the Filipino people overhaul a system that continues to degenerate due to excessive politicking. He added that more people are seeing the logic in the government's campaign for political change and agreeing that "Charter change is a constructive solution to the gridlock that hinders our growth as a nation."
He said there is no plan to hold a dialogue with Velarde at present but the Charter Change Advocacy Commission (CCAC) are already conducting the needed information drive on the proposal, including a meeting with several sectors like the religious groups.
He said while they acknowledge that Velarde may have a huge influence, it would all be resolved once a plebiscite is conducted. He said the initial signatures gathered through a people's initiative are already enough to hold a plebiscite. (JMR/Sunnex)
(April 28, 2006 issue)
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