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CRITIQUE OF CHACHA UNDER PRESIDENT DUTERTE

CRITIQUE OF CHACHA UNDER PRESIDENT DUTERTE. Atty. Neri Javier Colmenares. Constitutional Revision under Pres. Duterte: Chacha circa 2018. Two Proposals in the House and 2 Concon Resolutions in the Senate 1. Resolution of Both Houses No. 8 ( RBH 8 Filed August 2, 2016)

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CRITIQUE OF CHACHA UNDER PRESIDENT DUTERTE

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  1. CRITIQUE OF CHACHA UNDER PRESIDENT DUTERTE Atty. Neri Javier Colmenares

  2. Constitutional Revision under Pres. Duterte: Chacha circa 2018 Two Proposals in the House and 2 Concon Resolutions in the Senate 1. Resolution of Both Houses No. 8 • ( RBH 8 Filed August 2, 2016) • - RBH 8 has dangerous transitory provisions (with Con Ass as procedure) 2. PDP-LABAN Proposed Federal Constitution (Not filed but given to the House) • - more dangerous, the PDP did not state its transitory provisions

  3. The PDP-LABAN Constitution • repeals/deletes social justice provisions in the Constitution (Agrarian Reform, urban land reform, etc.) 2. Opens up the Philippine economy to TNCs and aliens thru repeal of “protectionist” economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution 3. Repeals or dilutes peoples rights 4. Also contains provisions for a Federal- Parliamentary system

  4. The RBH 8 Constitution 1. Grants dictatorial powers to Pres. Duterte 2. Dilutes peoples rights 3. Amends the “protectionist” economic provisions in the 1987 Constitution and shifts to Congress the power to chart constitutional policies and subject it to massive lobby by vested economic interests 5. Also contains provisions for a Federal Presidential System

  5. 1. RBH 8 Grant Dictatorial Powers to Duterte Section 6 “Upon ratification of this Constitution, the present Congress shall be dissolvedand the incumbent President shall exercise legislative powersuntil the first Federal Congress is convened” • Grants Marcosian presidential decrees powers • Terminates employees of Senate and House

  6. Cuts the term of all incumbent members of independent constitutional commissions upon its ratification Article XVIII Section 12 The incumbent members of the Civil Service Commission, the Commission on Elections and the COA shall continue in office for one year after the ratification of this Constitution, unless sooner removed for cause or become incapacitated or appointed to a new term thereunder.

  7. All 57 members of COMELEC, Commission on Audit and Civil Service are appointees of Pres. Duterte • A. Termination of all members of the Independent Constitutional Commissions and expanding its members to 19 namely : * COMELEC - that oversees all elections * COA – that audits all government contracts * CSC- that decides the suspension and removal of all gov’t officers and employees

  8. Opportunity to revamp and reappoint the Judiciary through change in jurisdiction “Section 9 Art. VIII (Judicial Department) is hereby revised as follows: Section 1 The Judicial power shall be vested in one Federal Supreme Court of the Philippines, the Regional Court of Appeals, the Sandiganbayan and in such Regional district courts as may be established by law in the different regions of the Federal State.”

  9. “Sec. 8 All courts existing at the time of the ratification of this Constitution shall continue to exercise their jurisdiction until otherwise provided by law. Lower courts that are created by virtue of this Constitution shall be immediately constituted x xx.” • Regional Court of Appeals have exclusive jurisdiction within the territorial boundaries of the Region (Section 5, Article VII) 2) SANDIGANBAYAN Jurisdiction changed to NCR, Calabarzon, Central Luzon Region, Central Visayas, Bicol Region and Davao

  10. Income tax exemption for all justices and judges of the judiciary Article VIII Section 18. x xx Upon the ratification of this Constitution, the salaries of the Chief Justice and the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, justices of the Regional Court of Appeals and the Sandiganbayan, and of judges of the lower courts shall not be subject to income tax.”

  11. Self Serving Constitution: Self-Serving Con Ass 1. Possibility of “No Election” and term Extension—hold over until 2022 2. Lengthened Term from 3 years to 5 years ( under Art. VIII Sec. 4 of the PDP Laban Constitution) 3. Adjustable Term Limits (Article VIII Sec. 4 PDP Laban Constitution)

  12. Adjustable Term Limits “A person who has served as a member of the Federal Assembly without interruption for more than 3 years within the 5 year term shall be considered to have served a term. No person who as served one term as a member of the Federal Assembly and who has served a second consecutive term without interruption for more than 3 years shall be qualified for election for a third consecutive term.

  13. Self Serving Constitution • Pres. Duterte is not prohibited from running in the 2022 Pres. Election in the PDP Laban Constitution 2. Office of the Vice President abolished (PDP Laban Constitution) 3. the Party List System is abolished 4. Income tax exemption for top govt officials including members of Congress

  14. Abolishing the Vice President’s Office Section 7. In case of death, permanent disability, removal from office, or resignation of the President, THE [DELETE Vice] President OF THE SENATE, OR IN CASE OF HIS INABILITY, THE SPEAKER OF THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY SHALL THEN ACT AS PRESIDENT UNTIL THE PRESIDENT SHALL HAVE BEEN ELECTED AND QUALIFIED.

  15. Income tax exemption for top govt. officials including Pres. Duterte “Art. XVIII Sec 15. Until the Federal Congress provides otherwise, the President, Vice-President, Senate President, Speaker of the House, the Chief Justice, the Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, Justices of the Supreme Court, Chairpersons of the Constitutional Commissions shall continue to receive the annual salaries x xx WITHOUT ANY INCOME TAX DEDUCTIONS.”

  16. The Carrot for Senate and House employees and Members Section 6 xxx Affected personnel of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall be entitled to separation pays in the amount of two-and-a-half (2.5) months for every year of government service. This entitlement shall be in addition to the retirement and other benefits under GSIS law and other social legislations.

  17. The stick for other government employees “Art. XVIII Section 14 Career civil service employees (other than the affected personnel of the Senate and the House of Reps) who are separated from the service x xxas a result of the reorganization following its ratification shall be entitled to appropriate xxx retirement and other benefits accruing to them under the laws xxx in force at the time of retirement. xxx This provision also applies to career officers whose resignation,tendered in line with the existing policy, had been accepted.”

  18. 2. Deletion of and threats to Peoples Rights • Article II Section “Sovereignty resides in the Filipino people THROUGH SUFFRAGE and all government authority xxx emanates from them.” 2) Section 15 Art II “The Federal State and all its Regions shall be a drug free country” 3) Amending social justice rights and “protectionist economic provisions”

  19. “no amendment” constitution Article XVII, Section 5 “(a) No amendment or procedure shall be commenced or continued where the integrity of the national territory is placed in jeopardy.” -- Attacks and violates: • peoples right to initiative and to amend • Indigenous peoples demand for genuine autonomy (BBL, Cordillera etc.) • Peace process and just and lasting peace

  20. 3. Attacks “protectionist economic provisions” and shifts to Congress corporate lobbying for self serving changes to constitutional policies by allowing foreign transnational corporations: • to own land • to exploit and use our natural resources • To own and control our education • To control public utilities • To control industries and our economy

  21. Allows foreigners to exploit our natural resources “Art. XII Sec. 2 The exploration, development, and utilization of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of the State. The FEDERAL State may directly undertake such activities, or it may enter into co-production, joint venture, or production- sharing agreements with Filipino citizens, or corporations or associations at least 60% of whose capital is owned by such citizens UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW

  22. Opening up Public Utilities to foreigners and beyond 50 yars Article XII Section 11. No franchise, certificate, or any other form of authorization for the operation of a public utility shall be granted except to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations organized under the laws of the Philippines, at least 60% of whose capital is owned by such citizens; nor shall such franchise, certificate, or authorization be exclusive in character or for a longer period than fifty years UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW.

  23. Absurdly giving foreigners control of public utilities less than their actual shares of stocks “Article XII Sec 11 xxx UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW, the participation of foreign investors in the governing body of any public utility enterprise shall be limited to their proportionate share in its capital, and all the executive and managing officers of such corporation or association must be citizens of the Philippines.”

  24. Allowing foreign TNCs to buy shares of stocks and control our education “Educational institutions, xxx shall be owned solely by citizens of the Philippines or corporations at least 60% of the capital is owned by such citizens, UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW.” 2. Allowing foreigners control and administration of educational institutions they do not own. - Still recognizes schools by religious orders except these, and will be taxed even if they Or control it without buying stocks

  25. RBH 8 also repealed the following provisions in Article XVII of the 1987 Constitution • Sec. 25 disallowing entry of foreign troops, bases or facilities • Sec. 26 in relation to recovering ill gotten wealth of Marcos and cronies

  26. No pretensions: The PDP Laban frontal attack on the economic provisions” 1. Deleting provisions such as: • prohibiting foreign TNCs from acquiring lands: b) promoting preferential use of Filipino labor and locally produced goods c) Prohibiting foreigners from wholly operating and controlling public utilities

  27. Also deleting the following provisions d) Delete industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural development and agrarian reform, e) Delete workers entitlement to “security of tenure” and labor’s “just share in the fruits of production”. f) DELETE The State shall, by law, undertaken an agrarian reform program founded on the right of farmers and regular farmworkers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till

  28. Abolish agrarian reform Section 21. “The State shall promote [DELETE comprehensive rural development and agrarian reform] RURAL DEVELOPMENT, HIGHER AGRICULTURAL PRODCUTIVITY, AND EQUITABLE LAND OWNERSHIP ARRANGEMENTS”

  29. g) DELETE The Congress may, by law, allow small-scale utilization of natural resources by Filipino citizens, as well as cooperative fish farming, with priority to subsistence fishermen and fish- workers in rivers, lakes, bays, and lagoons” h) DELETE State protection of rights of subsistence fishermen and their right in offshore fishing against “foreign intrusion” • DELETE The Congress may provide for the applicability of customary laws governing property rights or relations in determining the ownership and extent of ancestral domain.]

  30. Opening up the sale or lease of reclaimed or forest to TNCs j) DELETE “Alienable lands of the public domain shall be limited to agricultural lands [DELETE Private corporations or associations may not hold such alienable lands of the public domain except by lease, for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable for not more than twenty-five years, and not to exceed one thousand hectares in area

  31. Allowing foreign control or ownership of any business or investment k) DELETE The Congress shall xxx when the national interest dictates, reserve to citizens of the Philippines xxx certain areas of investments l) DELETE In the grant of rights, privileges, and concessions covering the national economy and patrimony, the State shall give preference to qualified Filipinos. m) DELETE The Congress shall enact measures that will encourage the formation and operation of enterprises whose capital is wholly owned by Filipinos.

  32. n) DELETE The practice of all professions in the Philippines shall be limited to Filipinos xxx o) [DELETED AND AMENDED Section 3. The State shall afford full protection to labor, local and overseas, organized and unorganized p) Delete restriction on foreigners in the exploration and use of our natural resources q) DELETED Section 10. Urban or rural poor dwellers shall not be evicted nor their dwelling demolished, except in accordance with law and in a just and humane manner.]

  33. r) DELETED No resettlement of urban or rural dwellers shall be undertaken without adequate consultation with them and the communities where they are to be relocated. s) DELETE All revenues of non-stock, non-profit educational institutions xxx for educational purposes shall be exempt from taxes and duties t) DELETE restrictions on foreign ownership of educational institutions, mass media

  34. Chacha under Art. XVII Sec. 1. Any xxx revision is proposed by: • “Con Ass” upon a ¾ vote of all Members of Congress; b) A constitutional convention through a 2/3 vote of Congress. c) Peoples Initiative Sec 4. ratified by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite xxx held not earlier than 60 days nor later than 90 days after the approval of such xxx revision.

  35. Con Ass Justification WHEREAS, it is more expeditious and less costly to revise the 1987 Constitution through a Constituent Assembly inasmuch as a Constitutional Convention will necessitate the election of delegates who will later propose and deliberate on the revisions and entail the appropriation of Php 8 Billion, more or less, when the 17th Congress can readily constitute itself into a constituent assembly using the funds allocated to the Legislative Branch”

  36. Why Con Ass must be opposed • Congress cannot perform an unrestricted self serving function • Congress failed to perform its main task in passing laws, much more pro-people laws • Congress has wasted public funds in highly irregular budgetary items/projects 4. No provision against self interest 5. “The need for speed” is dangerous

  37. Rule: Congress cannot pass a law that will benefit itself • 1. allow members to extend their term and provide for “no election” • 2. grant them income tax exemption • 3. lengthen their term • 4. eliminate or expand term limits

  38. It cant add one more task because it even failed to do its main function • Both Houses of Congress had extreme difficulty in doing its main job of legislation and cannot demand additional tasks when it had a dismal record in passing laws. • 16th Congress only passed 74 national laws in 3 years ( about Php 300 M per law) • It passed many anti people laws

  39. 2. The justification of “saving” Php 8 B is incongruent to the record of government which has allowed useless spending of billions of pesos on unnecessary, corrupt or irregular projects -- irregular and corrupt projects in the Budget passed ( Risk Management Fund, Malampaya Fund, BUB)

  40. The need for speed • Expeditious approval of chacha is very dangerous • RBH 8 does not contain express restrictions to the conflict of interest issues of members of Congress: term extension still possible

  41. Cha Cha must be opposed 1. It grants Pres. Duterte dictatorial powers 2. It attacks and dilutes peoples rights 3. Opens up to the countries economy to foreign exploitation

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