Anti-Cha-cha want to keep political dynasties

Today, the main focus in the House of Representatives and the Senate is about the campaign promise of Pres. Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte that during his term as President, he would amend the 1987 Constitution and install a federal form of government to replace our present unitary, which is now 30 years old since was ratified. So is it wrong for a nation that overwhelmingly voted for the Davao City Mayor to become our President to fulfill his campaign promise? I think not!

The problem lies upon those political families that have controlled the Philippines in the last 30 or more years. Yes, since the EDSA Revolt of 1986 booted out the Marcos Dictatorship, then Pres. Cory Aquino ordered the so-called Marcos constitution repealed… and despite the pleas of then Vice-President Salvador “Doy” Laurel to bring back the 1935 Constitution, the powers-that-be refused to listen to Doy and his UNIDO Party (including me) and created a constitutional commission (con-com) composed of pro-Cory commissioners.

What did the con-com create? As the late Sir Max Soliven would say, “A kilometric constitution!” Thirty years later despite this supposedly new Constitution, political dynasties still rules our political life and literally our land! During the reign of Tita Cory’s son, former president Benigno “P-Noy” Aquino III, no one dared even to suggest for a constitutional reform or risk becoming a political pariah. So if you hear the noisy anti-federal voices, just look at the name of that person and chances are high that they are linked to the Yellow regime that refuses to amend the Constitution named after Tita Cory.

A week ago, con-com delegate who eventually became Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. led the charged to discredit federalism in the hallowed halls of the Philippine Senate in its first public hearing on Charter change. In his own words, Davide declared, “A shift to federalism is a lethal experiment, a fatal leap, a plunge to death, and a leap to hell.” He added that the 1987 Constitution is the best in the world!

For a Cebuano who had an illustrious career, he goes against the great majority of Cebuanos who want a federal form of government because we are fed up with Imperial Manila. But then, Mr. Davide genuflects before his political patrons, getting for himself top positions in government, which in truth has not helped improve the lot of his fellow Cebuanos.

Even if he is against federalism, he should have helped educate us on the pros and cons of federalism. As a learned man who is against federalism, he could have found better words rather than say, “Federalism is a fatal leap, plunge to death and a leap to hell.” The problem with people who are against federalism, are successful nations like the United States, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and yes our ASEAN neighbor Malaysia, which have a federal form of government.

After World War II ended with Germany in shambles, from its Nazi past, West Germany adopted a federal form of government and when East Germany fell from the clutches of the Iron Curtain, it rejoined West Germany and is now part of the German federal government. Come now Mr. Davide, did Germany make a fatal leap to hell when they adopted a federal form of government when most of their cities were bombed into rubble by the Allies? Germany is Europe’s most successful nation… it is not in hell!

Again, let me point out that federalism is not the best solution to our nation’s ills. But certainly after having a unitary form of government under the 1935 Constitution and continued under the 1987 Constitution, it’s a total of 83 years, which as president Manuel L. Quezon once quipped, “Run like hell by Filipinos!” Thirty years under the 1987 Constitution and one of the biggest issues that continues to plague the ordinary Filipino is a serious lack of justice! That despite the anti-dynasty provision in the 1987 Constitution, there is still no such law to prohibit political families from controlling politics.

Let me take a quote from Wikipedia on the anti-dynasty provisions of the 1987 Constitution: “The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines states in Article II Section 26, ‘The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.’ Despite the provision in the Constitution, no law has been enacted concerning the status of political dynasties in the Philippines.

The closest explicit mention of political dynasties in Philippine law can be seen in Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code, where Book I, Title Two, Chapter 1, Section 43 states the term limit of local government officials. However, it does not include any limitations on the running of the incumbent’s family relations or on the holding of multiple political positions by members of the same family.” What this nation needs is a constitution where anti-dynasty prohibition would be defined within the constitution itself.