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Saturday, December 09, 2006
SC asked: Stop House from convening Con-Ass
MANILA -- Former senator John Osmeña asked the Supreme Court Friday to stop the alleged railroading by the House of Representatives of a move to convene Congress into a constituent assembly (Con-Ass) without the participation of the Senate.
This, as the Senate rejected the invitation of the House to convene as a Con-Ass.
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In a 24-page taxpayer suit, Osmeña asked the High Court to nullify House Resolution 1450, saying the House of Representative acted with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction when it amended its rules.
Osmeña referred to House Rule 15, Section 105, which the lawmakers had deleted to allow them to convene into a constituent assembly even without the separate three-fourths vote of concurrence by their counterparts in the Senate.
The former senator asked the High Court to rule on whether the Senate and the House should vote jointly or separately to propose amendments to the 1987 Constitution.
Of particular interest to Osmeña was the contentious provision of the constitution, Article 17, Section 1, which according to him, should mean that the Senate and the House should vote separately in establishing itself as a Con-Ass.
He said the House resolution is unconstitutional because it goes against the essence of bicameralism espoused by the Constitution.
"The intent of the House of Representatives to railroad the amendment of the Constitution cannot be emphasized enough. Clearly, what seems to be a mere change in the rules in the House of Representatives is actually a circumvention of the provisions on amendments or revisions, or Article 17 of the Constitution," Osmeña said.
Named respondents in the suit were the House of Representatives and Speaker Jose de Venecia.
Osmeña, who lost his reelection bid in 2004, said de Venecia, in various interviews, hinted of the move by the House of Representatives to shift to the unicameral parliamentary system of government by December 15."
Although the present Constitution is silent on the method by which the requisite 3/4 vote is to be obtained, Osmeña said the standard of bicameralism maybe deduced from "the constitutional structure and the architecture of the government established by the Constitution."
At the Senate, Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan said he and his colleagues will definitely turn down the invitation of Charter change advocates in the Lower House because what the congressmen did was "a total violation of the Constitution."
"By their own illegal act, this 'final push' by the House of Representatives is turning out to be the 'final nail in the coffin' for Charter change at this time," Pangilinan said.
Pangilinan said House secretary general Roberto Nazareno, who delivered the invitation to the Senate, had no authority to do so.
"House Resolution 1450 is a bogus and illegal resolution that produces no legal effect whatsoever. It binds neither the House of Representatives nor the Senate because of its illegality," he said.
Until it is brought to the Senate plenary and approved by a majority vote, Pangilinan maintained that the Senate cannot, as an institution, participate in any Con-Ass, "much less participate in an assembly illegally called by the majority in the House of Representatives."
Senators Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. and Rodolfo Biazon share Pangilinan's view.
Senator Franklin Drilon, on the other hand, said the House of Representatives is still within its "rights" to passing Resolution 1450.
Drilon clarified that the House was very careful not to use the words "constituent assembly" in Resolution 1450 and simply stated it as a call to propose amendments to the Constitution.
In Malacañang, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will push for Charter change in the same way that she batted for new taxes, such as the expanded value-added tax.
Bunye, who is also Presidential spokesman, issued the statement as opposers to the Charter change drive vowed to go all-out against moves to amend the Constitution via a Con-Ass.
Meanwhile, Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales called on pro-administration lawmakers "to abscond and break away from sinful and immoral acts since it is dividing the nation."
"Let us be united. Let us set aside (our) selfish ways, particularly those in the government," Rosales said during an interview over radio Veritas.
Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, reiterated his call for vigilance against lawmakers who only want to take advantage of the power.
He encouraged the public to participate in the prayer-rally against Con-Ass next week and for the people to pray for the enlightenment of government leaders. (ECV/CPB/DBP/JMR/MSN/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star General Santos. (December 9, 2006 issue)
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