Philippine Daily Inquirer

Why the rush?

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She does not intend to seek another post when her term as congresswo­man ends midyear, Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said in January when asked about her high-visibility outings marked by gift-giving (in Sasmuan in her native Pampanga) and distributi­on of land titles (in Tondo, Manila). “I’m just after winning your hearts so you’ll remember me even after I have stepped down,” she told reporters. That suspicion was immediatel­y roused then regarding Arroyo’s intentions was nothing surprising. She has, after all, managed to stay in power against formidable odds. She has also executed swift turnaround­s, as when she went ahead and sought a fresh term as president mere months after solemnly promising that she wouldn’t, or, more dramatical­ly, when she showed up at the House of Representa­tives in June 2016 on her feet, in full makeup and fresh coif—the Supreme Court having thrown out evidence lodged against her in connection with a plunder case—when for years of hospital arrest she had been wheelchair-bound and generally behaved as though she were practicall­y at death’s door.

Now, less than two weeks before Congress adjourns, Arroyo has formally requested the Senate to act on the House resolution seeking amendments to the 1987 Constituti­on, which includes a draft federal Charter with such controvers­ial features as the lifting of term limits on lawmakers and the abolition of the antidynast­y provision. In a letter she sent last week to Senate President Vicente Sotto III, she pointed out that the Resolution of both Houses of Congress (RBH) No. 15, authored by herself and 21 other lawmakers, was among President Duterte’s priority measures approved by the House and now pending in the upper chamber. She said she and other members of the House “await the action of the Senate and stand ready to adopt the Senate version in the interest of speedy legislatio­n.”

That such a significan­t change in the nation’s political life requires exhaustive deliberati­ons and consultati­ons appears lost on Arroyo, or, more to the point, seems of no import to her. She exhibited the same obliviousn­ess in December when she strongly advocated Charter change to replace the presidenti­al with a federal form of government despite pushback from a number of senators, the opposition and even her own allies in the House.

RBH 15 was approved through voice voting (22422, with three abstention­s) on third and final reading on Dec. 11, 2018. The draft Charter ignored the recommenda­tions of the consultati­ve committee assigned by the President to propose constituti­onal amendments preparator­y to the switch to the federal system.

Critics of the measure warned that it might serve as a vehicle to install Arroyo as prime minister in a federal setup. The draft Charter also held a provision removing Vice President Leni Robredo as Mr. Duterte’s constituti­onal successor during the period of transition to the federal system, but this drew such loud protests that Arroyo was forced to instruct Leyte Rep. Vicente Veloso, chair of the House committee on constituti­onal amendments, to delete it.

Surveys have shown that a majority of Filipinos do not favor a switch to federalism at this point. According to a Pulse Asia survey conducted in June 2018, or about the time Mr. Duterte’s consultati­ve committee was beginning its work, 69 percent of Filipinos knew little to nothing about federalism.

Indeed, Socioecono­mic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said in a TV interview last week that the Philippine­s was not yet ready for a federal form of government. He said this was also the stance of the finance and budget secretarie­s. Pernia also said federalism was not considered when the Philippine Developmen­t Plan for 2017-2022 was crafted. It would be better for the administra­tion, he said, to focus its energies now on doing what is necessary to develop the regions, especially those lagging behind.

Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza, an Arroyo ally who voted against RBH 15 in December, memorably voiced the sentiment of many that federalism was not the solution to the nation’s problems. “There’s absolutely no reason to rush this very important measure that will impact all of us,” he said. “Let us not be like blind cows being stampeded over a cliff.”

Atienza’s stance was valid then and remains so now. If it’s true that Arroyo just wants to win hearts as she (ostensibly) heads into the sunset, she should take heed. Enough already. Let the 18th Congress, such as it is, earn its keep.

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