MANILA -Senators welcomed on Tuesday President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s pronouncement that he doesn’t see Charter Change (Cha-cha) as a precedence at the same time as a number of lawmakers push to amend the Constitution.
Senate Majority chief Joel Villanueva mentioned there are legal guidelines already in place to draw extra international buyers and the Senate itself is doing extra work to enhance the nation’s financial system.
Villanueva mentioned the senators want to check the results of modification to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, Foreign Investments Act, and Public Services Act to encourage extra international direct investments.
“Tuloy lang po tayo sa trabaho dito sa Senado at kasama po dyan ang mga pagdinig sa (We just continue the work here in the Senate and this includes hearings on) Committee on Constitutional Amendments,” he mentioned in a press release.
Meanwhile, Senator Grace Poe mentioned the pronouncement of President Marcos will certainly have an effect on the consensus on the necessity for constitution change.
“Kung hindi susuporta ang Pangulo, mas uunahin ng kongreso ang mga nasa priority list tulad ng (If the President will not support, the Congress will deal with priority list first like the) Internet Transactions Act or CDC bill,” Poe mentioned in one other assertion.
Poe advised that new legal guidelines meant for international investments like amendments on the Public Service Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and Foreign Investments Act must also be mentioned by lawmakers in constitution change public consultations.
“Kung foreign investments lang din ang usapin (If it is about foreign investments), it might not be relevant to go around the public asking if they agree to term extensions or other non-economic provisions,” she mentioned.
Also agreeing with President Marcos, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano mentioned he’ll focus as an alternative on pursuing measures pertinent to values, costs, jobs and revenue.
Cayetano admitted that loads must be modified within the Constitution however famous that a few of it are “very political.”
“Ngayon galing sa (Coming from the) pandemic, additional distraction talaga (really). Madi-distract lang tayo (We will just be distracted),” the lawmaker mentioned.
Undeterred by the President’s pronouncement, Senator Robinhood Padilla urged Filipinos to help his name for a Constitutional Assembly that goals to amend a number of the Constitution’s financial provisions.
“Sana mga kababayan, itong mga economic provision na ito maisagawa natin dahil ito ginawa ng mga kapitbahay natin sa Asya at sila masigabo na (Hopefully my countrymen, we can work on these economic provisions because our progressive Asian neighbors have already done these),” Padilla mentioned over a radio interview on Tuesday.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri instructed reporters that he sees no downside with what Padilla is doing.
“Trabaho niya yan bilang (It is his job as the) chairman of the Constitutional Amendments. Hayaan natin siya sa trabaho niya. Pero pagdating sa plenaryo, pagdating ng Rules Committee, pagbibigyan po natin ang priorities, ang nakabinbin pang (Let him do his job. But when it comes to the plenary, in the Rules Committee, we will prioritize the pending) 19 LEDAC [Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council] priority measures,” Zubiri mentioned.
President Marcos’ elder sister Senator Imee Marcos mentioned altering the Consitution could be a good suggestion however famous that it isn’t well timed given the nation’s present state of affairs.
“Everybody has agreed naman kasi na ‘yung (because the) economic provisions kailangan palitan (needed to be changed). Wala namang ibang tututol. Ang problema pag binuksan mo yung Saligang Batas, talagang kakalkalin lahat. Hindi maiiwasan ‘yun. Kaya’t (No one will disagree, The problem is when you open the Constitution, everything will be scrutinized. It can’t be avoided. That’s why) given the state of our economy and health threats that face us today, yung kapatid ko matagal nang sinasabi talaga na huwag muna yung constitutional issues kasi mahabang usapin yan. Baka cannot afford tayo ngayon (my brother have long been saying not to discuss constitutional issues because it will be a long discussion. We could not afford it right now),” Marcos instructed reporters.
In an interview after arrivingfrom his Japan state go to, President Marcos expressed confidence that the nation can obtain its objectives throughout the current constitutional framework.
“There’s so many other things that we need to do first, that we can still do, we can achieve,” the President mentioned. (With a report from Leonel Abasola/PNA)