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Sunday, October 22, 2006
Palace justifies Arroyo's push for Cha-cha
MANILA -- Malacañang has defended President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's continued pitch for Charter change particularly after she reiterated her administration's determination to see it happen during a dinner attended by Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said Arroyo has long been advocating for political reforms through Charter change and her reiteration for it is not new.
Ermita added that Arroyo had discussed this during the 2004 presidential campaign and again during her 2005 State of the Nation Address.
He said as to the mode of changing the Constitution it would be up to Congress for constituent assembly mode, and to the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (Ulap) and the Sigaw ng Bayan who are pushing for reforming the Constitution through a people's initiative.
"She already said she wants political reforms and pursue Charter change so what is wrong in saying I want Charter change so I don't think they will take it to mean that the President is pressuring the Supreme Court, it's not like that," Ermita said.
He said by amending the Constitution more job opportunities would be created, which would result in more food on the table and enhanced ability to send children to school as it would pave the way for liberalization on the economic activities like allowing foreign ownership of media offices, real estate business and mining firms.
Arroyo, during a dinner for the delegates to the Global Forum on Liberty and Prosperity held in Malacañang, said the "dragon of politics" must first be slain if the government is to modernize the country.
"Politics dominates our lives way out of proportion to the real needs of the people and a change in politics must be accompanied by a change in our system of government. To that end, we seek to amend our Constitution so as to modernize if we are to build a modern Philippines," she said.
Her statements came at the heels of Panganiban's admission that they are getting pressures from both sides in the handling of the people's initiative case.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. said Panganiban should not have admitted receiving pressure but "I don't think it's leaving its damage."
For his part, lawyer Raul Lambino, spokesman of Sigaw ng Bayan, said they are not exerting pressure on the SC adding that they do not have such capability.
Lambino said even if some SC justices may feel that way, he believes that no person or group could pressure the high court which is an "institution beyond pressure."
He added that they expect the SC to come up with a ruling on the people's initiative next week, the latest on Oct. 25.
Lambino said if the decision is favorable, the Commission on Elections would be directed to hold a plebiscite in 60 to 90 days so the campaign could start after Nov. 1 and the plebiscite on or before Jan. 15, which is the start of the campaign period for the May 2007 elections.
But if the SC's decision is unfavorable to the people's initiative petition, Lambino said they would just have to "respect the decision of the Supreme Court because we live under a rule of law, otherwise we do not thrive as a democratic state if we don't respect the Supreme Court decision."
At the House of Representatives, it is unlikely for the members of the Lower Chamber to lobby or even pressure the justices of the SC, said House Majority Leader Prospero Nograles.
Nograles said if there is pressure exerted on the SC as claimed by Panganiban, then it is most likely that it would have been coming from the senators.
He answered the insinuation earlier made by Senator Joker Arroyo that it was the Lower Chamber, which is pressuring the high court on people's initiative.
Nograles said there was never any attempt by members of the House, particularly the majority, to influence the SC to rule in favor of the petitioners of the people's initiative.
Besides, he added, what is pending before the high tribunal was not the initiative being pushed by the legislators.
"The House resolution seeking Congress to convene into a Constituent Assembly is not an issue in the Supreme Court and so congressmen can't exert pressure. But Senate abolition is an issue in the people's initiative petition now in SC. So I guess it's the senators who would pressure the SC against their abolition when we turn unicameral parliamentary, not the House," Nograles said.
Speaker Jose de Venecia paid a visit to Panganiban but he denied that his visit had something to do with the petition for people's initiative.
Nograles himself would not comment on the matter but stressed that congressmen have no motive to pressure the court and to prove this they have already carried out their constitutional mandate in approving the budget of the judiciary without delay.
The House, he added, has approved the budget of the judiciary even without the appearance of any member of the high tribunal during the plenary debate last week.
On the other hand, Cagayan de Oro Representative Constantino Jaraula, chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments, denied Senator Arroyo's claim that the House is among the parties pressuring the SC on the people's initiative issue.
He urged the senator to name those whom he claimed to have been pressuring the SC otherwise making such suspicions without any basis is irresponsible. (Sunnex)
(October 22, 2006 issue)
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