Resolution for term extension of all elected execs.
The NO-EL GAMBIT has been revived by supporters of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to postpone the holding of the 2010 elections.
No-el refers to no elections.
A resolution extending the term of Ms A
rroyo beyond that year has quietly found its way into the powerful House committee on constitutional amendments.
The resolution filed by administration Rep. Hermilando Mandanas of Batangas seeks to keep Ms Arroyo in her post for one more year should his parallel proposal of moving the May 2010 elections a year later be adopted.
Lawyer Neri Colmenares said Tuesday that the one-year term extension for Ms Arroyo would be the logical effect of the resolution, which states that: "All elected officials whose term will end at noon on June 30, 2010 shall hereby hold office until noon of June 30, 2011."
Colmenares later told the Inquirer that HR 550 would eventually be "merged" with similar measures seeking to change the Charter, including the resolution to convene Congress into a constituent assembly currently being circulated by Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte.
Ms Arroyo, along with senators, serves a six-year term. Members of the House of Representatives, governors and mayors have three-year terms.
"Is there a basis to assert or suspect that one of the reasons for changing the Constitution is for the term extension of President Arroyo and other public officials?" Colmenares told members of the committee.
Answering his own question, he said: "I would humbly forward, your honor, that there is a basis for that."
Blowing the whistle
Colmenares, secretary general of the National Union of People's Lawyers, blew the whistle on House Resolution No. 550 while speaking as a resource person at the committee hearing on whether there was a need to revise the 1987 Constitution.
The resolution seeks to extend to four years the term of House members and other elected local officials, except those at the barangay level.
Colmenares said the Mandanas resolution was one of 10 measures pending in the committee, all seeking to amend or revise the Constitution.
Initial denial
La Union Rep. Victor Ortega, chair of the committee on constitutional amendments, initially denied the existence of a resolution seeking term extension for Ms Arroyo or other elected officials.
But Ortega later acknowledged that HR 550 had been formally accepted by his committee.
"(But) I assure you, this has not been discussed," Ortega told Colmenares.
Palace against extension
Anthony Golez, deputy presidential spokesperson, said Mandanas was free to file HR 550, but said it was too premature to talk about it.
Asked if Malacañang would exercise its "moral suasion" to talk its allies out of moves to extend Ms Arroyo's term, Golez said: "We've said time and again that the President is stepping down in 2010."
Golez reiterated that Malacañang would back moves to lift the restrictive economic provisions of the Constitution, but not the limit on the term of the President.
"If you ask the Palace, we will not agree to a term extension of any elected official," he said in reaction to a survey showing that a majority of Filipinos are opposed to Charter change amid fears it would be used to extend the President's term.
He said Malacañang would block any efforts to extend the term limits of any elected official, including the President.
Lawmakers' call
But Golez said it was up to lawmakers to decide when to go ahead with Charter change. "We'll leaving it up to Congress to tackle Charter change because it begins and ends there," he said.
Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday sought Ortega's commitment that the public would not be in for a "surprise" on the Villafuerte resolution and "wake up one morning with the Constitution already changed."
"That is correct. Personally, I do not like surprises," Ortega replied.
Supreme Court
Sought for comment, Majority Leader Arthur Defensor said there was "no way" that the Villafuerte resolution would skip the procedures of the House and go straight to the Supreme Court.
Himself a signatory to the resolution, Defensor said the measure would basically seek the high court's ruling on whether the Senate and House of Representatives should convene as a constituent assembly--and later vote--jointly or separately in amending the Constitution.
"Whatever happens, it will pass through the regular process of the House," he told the Inquirer.
"I signed the resolution because I was looking for a trigger mechanism that will force the hand of the Supreme Court to rule on the two basic issues."
Three modes
Convening Congress into a constituent assembly is one of the three modes of amending the Constitution. The others are the people's initiative and constitutional convention whose delegates are elected.
Ortega said the Villafuerte resolution would be referred to his committee in case it was filed and submitted to the plenary by the committee on rules headed by Defensor.
In HR 550, Mandanas noted that the 1987 Constitution "does not specify the need to call for a constituent assembly or joint session of Congress for proposals for amendments to, or revision of, the Constitution."
He instead went by the House rules, stating that "proposals to amend or revise the Constitution shall be by resolution which may be filed at any time by any member."
"The adoption of resolutions proposing amendments to or revision of the Constitution shall follow the procedure for the enactment of bills," says Section 140 of the rules.
Copy of resolution
Hontiveros challenged Villafuerte and Ms Arroyo's son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, to present a copy of the resolution to lawmakers opposed to Charter change.
"In light of the administration's attempt to evade accountability over charges of fraud and corruption, any attempt to unilaterally amend the Constitution by an administration-dominated House of Representatives spells term extension for (Arroyo)," she said in a statement.
Courting protests
The President's allies are courting a major protest action if they insist on tinkering with the Constitution, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said Tuesday.
Cruz said the public did not buy the congressmen's claim that they would only change the Charter's economic provisions once they convene Congress into a constituent assembly.
"That is a lie. What they would like to change is anything there that can make the incumbent person continue her tenure of office no matter under what title. Magulo 'yan (That will create trouble)," Cruz said at a news forum Tuesday.
He said he would not advise them to proceed with (the constituent assembly) and vote on it, then try to go to the Supreme Court. "If they do that, and I think that is the plan, this might be the trigger that I'm talking about," he added.
His contacts among the civil society groups have been telling him that "many groups are preparing" to move in case the House succeeds in turning itself into a constituent assembly in order to amend the Constitution, the archbishop said.
Cruz said lawmakers favoring Charter change could not attribute the poverty and corruption in the country to the Constitution's provisions.
By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
The NO-EL GAMBIT has been revived by supporters of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to postpone the holding of the 2010 elections.
No-el refers to no elections.
A resolution extending the term of Ms A
rroyo beyond that year has quietly found its way into the powerful House committee on constitutional amendments.The resolution filed by administration Rep. Hermilando Mandanas of Batangas seeks to keep Ms Arroyo in her post for one more year should his parallel proposal of moving the May 2010 elections a year later be adopted.
Lawyer Neri Colmenares said Tuesday that the one-year term extension for Ms Arroyo would be the logical effect of the resolution, which states that: "All elected officials whose term will end at noon on June 30, 2010 shall hereby hold office until noon of June 30, 2011."
Colmenares later told the Inquirer that HR 550 would eventually be "merged" with similar measures seeking to change the Charter, including the resolution to convene Congress into a constituent assembly currently being circulated by Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte.
Ms Arroyo, along with senators, serves a six-year term. Members of the House of Representatives, governors and mayors have three-year terms.
"Is there a basis to assert or suspect that one of the reasons for changing the Constitution is for the term extension of President Arroyo and other public officials?" Colmenares told members of the committee.
Answering his own question, he said: "I would humbly forward, your honor, that there is a basis for that."
Blowing the whistle
Colmenares, secretary general of the National Union of People's Lawyers, blew the whistle on House Resolution No. 550 while speaking as a resource person at the committee hearing on whether there was a need to revise the 1987 Constitution.
The resolution seeks to extend to four years the term of House members and other elected local officials, except those at the barangay level.
Colmenares said the Mandanas resolution was one of 10 measures pending in the committee, all seeking to amend or revise the Constitution.
Initial denial
La Union Rep. Victor Ortega, chair of the committee on constitutional amendments, initially denied the existence of a resolution seeking term extension for Ms Arroyo or other elected officials.
But Ortega later acknowledged that HR 550 had been formally accepted by his committee.
"(But) I assure you, this has not been discussed," Ortega told Colmenares.
Palace against extension
Anthony Golez, deputy presidential spokesperson, said Mandanas was free to file HR 550, but said it was too premature to talk about it.
Asked if Malacañang would exercise its "moral suasion" to talk its allies out of moves to extend Ms Arroyo's term, Golez said: "We've said time and again that the President is stepping down in 2010."
Golez reiterated that Malacañang would back moves to lift the restrictive economic provisions of the Constitution, but not the limit on the term of the President.
"If you ask the Palace, we will not agree to a term extension of any elected official," he said in reaction to a survey showing that a majority of Filipinos are opposed to Charter change amid fears it would be used to extend the President's term.
He said Malacañang would block any efforts to extend the term limits of any elected official, including the President.
Lawmakers' call
But Golez said it was up to lawmakers to decide when to go ahead with Charter change. "We'll leaving it up to Congress to tackle Charter change because it begins and ends there," he said.
Deputy Minority Leader Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday sought Ortega's commitment that the public would not be in for a "surprise" on the Villafuerte resolution and "wake up one morning with the Constitution already changed."
"That is correct. Personally, I do not like surprises," Ortega replied.
Supreme Court
Sought for comment, Majority Leader Arthur Defensor said there was "no way" that the Villafuerte resolution would skip the procedures of the House and go straight to the Supreme Court.
Himself a signatory to the resolution, Defensor said the measure would basically seek the high court's ruling on whether the Senate and House of Representatives should convene as a constituent assembly--and later vote--jointly or separately in amending the Constitution.
"Whatever happens, it will pass through the regular process of the House," he told the Inquirer.
"I signed the resolution because I was looking for a trigger mechanism that will force the hand of the Supreme Court to rule on the two basic issues."
Three modes
Convening Congress into a constituent assembly is one of the three modes of amending the Constitution. The others are the people's initiative and constitutional convention whose delegates are elected.
Ortega said the Villafuerte resolution would be referred to his committee in case it was filed and submitted to the plenary by the committee on rules headed by Defensor.
In HR 550, Mandanas noted that the 1987 Constitution "does not specify the need to call for a constituent assembly or joint session of Congress for proposals for amendments to, or revision of, the Constitution."
He instead went by the House rules, stating that "proposals to amend or revise the Constitution shall be by resolution which may be filed at any time by any member."
"The adoption of resolutions proposing amendments to or revision of the Constitution shall follow the procedure for the enactment of bills," says Section 140 of the rules.
Copy of resolution
Hontiveros challenged Villafuerte and Ms Arroyo's son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, to present a copy of the resolution to lawmakers opposed to Charter change.
"In light of the administration's attempt to evade accountability over charges of fraud and corruption, any attempt to unilaterally amend the Constitution by an administration-dominated House of Representatives spells term extension for (Arroyo)," she said in a statement.
Courting protests
The President's allies are courting a major protest action if they insist on tinkering with the Constitution, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said Tuesday.
Cruz said the public did not buy the congressmen's claim that they would only change the Charter's economic provisions once they convene Congress into a constituent assembly.
"That is a lie. What they would like to change is anything there that can make the incumbent person continue her tenure of office no matter under what title. Magulo 'yan (That will create trouble)," Cruz said at a news forum Tuesday.
He said he would not advise them to proceed with (the constituent assembly) and vote on it, then try to go to the Supreme Court. "If they do that, and I think that is the plan, this might be the trigger that I'm talking about," he added.
His contacts among the civil society groups have been telling him that "many groups are preparing" to move in case the House succeeds in turning itself into a constituent assembly in order to amend the Constitution, the archbishop said.
Cruz said lawmakers favoring Charter change could not attribute the poverty and corruption in the country to the Constitution's provisions.
By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
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