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Wednesday, October 25, 2006
SC votes 8-7 against people's initiative
MANILA (2nd Update, 3:10 p.m.) -- The Supreme Court (SC) dashed the hopes of the Arroyo administration to amend the 1987 Constitution by a close vote of 8 to 7 against the people's initiative petition filed by two pro-Charter change groups.
Majority of the justices in an en-banc decision finds no merit in the initiative petition and believed that the method used
by the Sigaw ng Bayan and the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (Ulap) was “irregular.”
Full text of the Supreme Court decision on people's initiative petition
The decision was penned by Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio, who was an appointee of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Arroyo has campaigned to replace the current form of government through Charter change.
Supreme Court Public Information Officer Gleo Guerra said the SC found the petition defective because it violates the Constitution, the law and jurisprudence.
It violates the Constitution, according to the Court because initiative petition does not comply the Constitution’s requirement on direct proposal by the people.
Section 2, Article XVII of the Constitution is the governing constitutional provision that allows a people’s initiative to propose amendments to the Constitution. According to the Court the proposal of the initiative petition constitutes a revision.
The SC also doubted whether the required number of signatures which is 12 percent of the total number of voters of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three percent of the registered voters was fulfilled.
The Court found that the signatures were obtained irregularly because they were just attached to the petition and there was no showing that those who signed the document knew what they were signing on.
“The signature sheet merely asks a question whether the people approve a shift from the Bicameral-Presidential to the Unicameral-Parliamentary system of government. The signature sheet does not show to the people the draft of the proposed changes before they are asked to sign the signature sheet,” the decision said.
The justices who voted against the initiative are Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban (an appointee of Arroyo), Justices Consuelo Ynares-Santiago, Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, Antonio Carpio (an appointee of Arroyo), Romeo Callejo Sr., Ma. Alicia Martinez (an appointee of Arroyo), Conchita Carpio-Morales (an appointee of Arroyo) and Adolfo Azcuna (an appointee of Arroyo).
Those who voted for the petition were Justices Reynato Puno, Leonardo Quisumbing, Renato Corona (an appointee of Arroyo), Dante Tinga (an appointee of Arroyo), Cancio Garcia (an appointee of Arroyo), Minita Chico-Nazario (an appointee of Arroyo) and Presbiterio Velasco Jr. (an appointee of Arroyo).
The ruling thus upheld the decision of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to deny the petition for lack of an enabling law.
In dismissing the initiative petition the Court found that the Commission on Elections (Comelec) did not commit grave abuse of discretion as alleged in the petition.
The Comelec en banc merely followed this Court’s ruling in Santiago and People’s Initiative for Reform, Modernization and Action (Pirma) v. Comelec.
“For following this Court’s ruling, no grave abuse of discretion is attributable to the Comelec. On this ground alone, the present petition warrants outright dismissal,” the Court decision said.
Under the rules, the Sigaw ng Bayan and Ulap have 15 days to appeal the decision.
Sigaw ng Bayan Deputy Spokesperson Fernando dela Pena in a television interview said that their group and the 6.3 million people who have affixed their signatures will for sure file a reconsideration of the Court’s decision.
“I thing this is a first round of a very long process,” dela Pena said.
Allies of Arroyo, who has campaigned to replace the current US-style two-chamber legislature with a unicameral parliament, have presented a petition with 6.3 million signatures, aiming for a plebiscite to endorse the constitutional changes. But critics have questioned the petition's legality.
In August, the Comelec - which would have to verify the signatures - rejected the petition, prompting the proponents to take the case to the Supreme Court.
Arroyo says gridlock under the current system makes the government inefficient at addressing poverty, development and other issues.
"Once again, the Supreme Court is the last bastion of democracy," said Representative Peter Cayetano, the official opposition spokesman. "We should agree and focus on reforms, including political reforms, which can be achieved with the present constitution and system."
Lawyer Raul Lambino, who spearheaded the signature drive, told the court earlier that the change from presidential to parliamentary form of government would abolish the Senate, which traditionally has served to rein in the administration.
The interim parliament would be composed of the current members of the Senate and the House of Representatives plus most of Arroyo's Cabinet. Arroyo would serve as head of state until her term ends in 2010, and would be given powers to nominate the prime minister from among members of the interim parliament.(ECV/AP/Sunnex)
(October 25, 2006 issue)
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