A DAY after stepping down as president, Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has filed a resolution calling for Constitutional amendments that, a lawyer said, is meant for her to regain power.
The former president and her son, Camarines Sur Rep. Diosdado Arroyo, yesterday filed as co-authors House Resolution 8 that calls for a constitutional convention to amend the 1987 Constitution. Macapagal-Arroyo filed seven other bills.
Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Cebu City chapter president Michael Yu said the measure is merely “saber-rattling” with President Aquino’s decision to organize a Truth Commission to look into allegations against the previous government.
Yu also said Arroyo wants to regain power and become prime minister in a parliamentary form of government.
Yu, however, said the measure isn’t a threat to Aquino. “The threat is more imagined than real,” he said.
Lawyer Democrito Barcenas, one of the leaders of Aquino’s campaign volunteers in Cebu, said Macapagal-Arroyo’s proposal
is an “exercise in futility.”
“If she (Arroyo) failed many times to secure Cha-cha when she was president, how much more now that she is an ex-president and pathetically abandoned by her allies in the House because she can no longer bribe them with pork barrel.
Kanang mga congressmen, weather weather lang na sila,” said Barcenas.
He said Aquino can muster his allies in Congress to block the measure because “historically, the President controls the House.”
Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casino, who has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) against Macapagal-Arroyo, said he was not surprised by the development.
“The cat is out of the bag. Lumabas ang agenda ni GMA to amend constitution so she can return to power as prime minister,” Casino told Sun.Star.
Former Akbayan lawmaker Risa Hontiveros said the filing of the resolution proves that Macapagal-Arroyo will not give up her power even in the 15th Congress.
Rep. Tomas Osmeña said he disagrees with the way Charter change proposals are tackled by Congress. Osmeña said legislator should discuss constitutional changes on a per-amendment basis.
“Generally I’m against to it because ang ilang style gyud ug ang ilang sistema murag de kahon ba. Mag-draft sila ug bag-ong
Constitution unya atong dawaton o dili, in other words, take it or leave it dili ko ganahan ana,” he said.
Osmeña said he knows that many legislators oppose Cha-cha.
Among the bills Macapagal-Arroyo filed yesterday are proposals seeking to integrate all education-related agencies,
establishing breastfeeding stations in workplaces, defining cyber crimes and listing penalties and creating a Department of Housing, Planning and Urban Development. (Sunnex/GMD/With ETB)