Zamboanga City launches ‘federalism alliance’

A federal form of government will empower the different regions in the country of good and effective governance

ZAMBOANGA CITY — The local government here — along with top local and national political leaders and senior national government officials — announced on Sunday the launching of the Alliance of Advocates of Federalism in the Philippines Inc., a Zamboanga City-based organization with a nationwide in scope.

AAFP president Atty. Nazir Ynawat disclosed that officials and leaders of federations and associations nationwide also showed up during the launching on Saturday night.

Ynawat — who claimed to have about 600,000 members all over the country — said the launching of the alliance here is to express support the initiatives of Senator Robin Padilla and Cagayan de Oro City Second District Representative Rufus Rodriguez which call for constitutional reforms through a constitutional convention.

Padilla and Rodriguez are keen to lead officials in both houses in Congress in shifting to “a unitary system to a federal form of government.”

Ynawat believes that the present form of government is highly centralized in political structure and that the decentralization of powers is insufficient to address to local or regional concerns under the 1987 Philippine Constitution.

Henry Solomon, a professor at the Western Mindanao State University here and the secretary general of AAFP, said that a federal form of government will empower the different regions in the country of good and effective governance.

He added that it will help address the political, economic and socio-cultural disparities of the people in terms of development and sharing resources.

Meantime, Zamboanga City Representative and House Majority Leader Manuel Dalipe described the AAFP alliance as the “touchstone of democracy.”

“It reminds us that we continue to enjoy the freedom of choice,” Dalipe said. “I absolutely agree that the 1987 constitution has already outlived its purpose and design. So many things have happened since the 1986 revolution which to me was a glorified power grab.”

“We have tried changing our leaders from various sides of the political spectrum but the Philippines remained on standstill. For nearly four decades the Philippines was a poster boy of failed democracy,” he added.