Davide: Duterte can still run as transition president

RETIRED chief justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr. on Tuesday said the revised transitory provisions of the proposed Federal Constitution still allow President Rodrigo R. Duterte to run as transition president.

At the resumption of the Senate hearing on Charter change, Mr. Davide said the country may have two presidents if the ratification of the new Constitution is done before 2022, the scheduled shift to a federal system. He said this “anomaly” would allow the incumbent president and vice-president to run for the transition elections.

“The catch here is that the incumbent President is not prohibited from running as transition president. To avoid, therefore, the anomaly of having two presidents and vice- presidents during the transition period, the incumbent is allowed to run as transition president, but not for president under the new federal constitution. He will surely win,” Mr. Davide said.

The Senate committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes, chaired by Senator Francis N. Pangilinan resumed its inquiry into the pending proposals to amend the 1987 Constitution, with the members of the Consultative Committee to review the 1987 Constitution (ConCom) presenting to the Senate its proposed Federal Constitution.

The ConCom released to media on Tuesday its revised federal constitution, consistent with Mr. Duterte’s orders to remove his availability for reelection under the new constitution.

In the revised federal charter, the ConCom indicated that the term of the president and vicepresident will end on June 30, 2022 and will not be extended. It also barred the incumbent president from seeking reelection in the 2022 elections.

Within six months from ratification of the new constitution, the consultative body proposed that the President call for an election for the transition president and vice-president in tandem. The two officials will also be ineligible to run for office in the May 2022 elections. The transition president will be tasked to preside over the transition toward federalism. He or she will also exercise all the powers of the president under the federal constitution until June 30, 2022.

For his part, former Senate president and ConCom member Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr. maintained that Mr. Duterte does not want to be the transition president.

“President Duterte does not want to give an impression that he wants to stay in power. Even the transitory presidency, he does not like it,” he told reporters.

Malacañang on Tuesday said it hopes the revised federal constitution will address concerns over Mr. Duterte’s “other motives” to shift to federalism. — with reports by and