MERGED: Charter Change

[SPRINGFIELD_XD_40]

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Sa pagka taas taas sa imong copy and pasted article na pipila na kabuok ani na issue .... DAGHAN STORYA DAGHAN SAYOP . I prove sa lage thru SOLID and CONCRETE EVIDENCES otherwise STORBOT ra kagawsan ana .

[mannyamador]

Signature drive for Charter change alarms bishops
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/net...s.bishops.html

MANILA -- Catholic bishops said Friday they believe that the people's initiative campaign to introduce amendments to the Charter is being
undertaken not to address the needs of the public but to protect the interests of a few people.

Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president, said the bishops are alarmed at the
petition campaign endorsed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arryo for a people's initiative to change the Constitution.

"We view with alarm... the present signature campaign endorsed by the government," the group said in a pastoral statement. "Signatures are
apparently collected without adequate information, discussion, and education."

It said changes being proposed "are dangerously unclear and open to manipulation by groups with self-serving interests."

Arroyo, whom critics have been urging to resign due to allegations of electoral fraud and curtailment of civil liberties, endorsed last week
the petition campaign.

The bishops said constitutional change "can only be morally justifiable" if revisions will lead to authentic reforms that assure
principled politics, accountability, electoral reforms and efficient services, particularly to the poor. No such provisions are clearly
specified in the signature drive, they added.

The statement urged predominantly Roman Catholic Filipinos to pray and discern appropriate action on the issue.

In the pastoral statement, Lagdameo stressed that the nature and the way the so called people's initiative campaign was being handled put
more questions in their minds and more clearly showed that efforts were to protect those in power.

"This lack of clarity on how the changes will truly benefit our nation raises disturbing questions about who will truly benefit from these
changes. It seems that the changes as they are being proposed now will benefit mainly those who already hold positions of power and privilege
in the current political system," he said.

Caloocan City Bishop Deogracias Iniguez said members of the Senate have sought the support of the bishops' group in opposing changes to
the Charter.

The meeting between Senator Manuel "Mar" Roxas and Iniguez and Bishop Julio Labayen of the Infanta Prelature took place at the Le Souffle
Restaurant in Makati City on Thursday.

During the meeting, Iniguez said Roxas asked for the CBCP's support in opposing the proposed Charter change being pushed through a people's
initiative.

Lagdameo said the manner by which the signatures are collected, which involves proponents going door to door, is not conducive to the kind
of informed participation that these fundamental changes demand.

The campaign, he added, lacks adequate information dissemination and discussion that indicate the people are properly informed of its real
purpose.

He said the people behind the move to change the Constitution have failed to explain fully how this would be beneficial to the public.

"No such provisions have been clearly specified in the present signature campaign. What form of parliamentary system, how such a
parliamentary system will truly serve the common good and the interests of the nation, especially the poor, have not been
articulated. Instead, people are given general and sweeping promises of political stability and reform that will allegedly automatically
come with a new political system," the prelate said.

Arroyo has been advocating a shift from a presidential to a parliamentary form of government, which she said would speed passage
of laws needed for the country's economic growth.

Opposition politicians are fighting the signature drive, with some branding it a ploy by Arroyo to stay in power. Under the present
constitution, the signatures of three percent of total voters in each electoral district would be needed for a "people's initiative" to
amend the Constitution. (MSN/AP/Sunnex)

[mannyamador]

Bernas: Arroyo insulting SC
Palace tries to ease CBCP fears

First posted 01:10am (Mla time) April 09, 2006
By Gil C. Cabacungan Jr., Armand N. Nocum, Jolene R. Bulambot, Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.ph...story_id=72133

A LEADING constitutionalist yesterday publicly rebuked President Macapagal-Arroyo for backing the signature campaign to change the Constitution, even as Malacanang pledged the people's will would prevail on the issue.

"Parang binabastos ng Presidente ang Supreme Court nyan when the Supreme Court said 'no' and the President said 'go ahead' (It seems the President is insulting the Supreme Court)," Fr. Joaquin Bernas, one of the framers of the 1987 Constitution, said during a forum on the Charter held in Cebu City.

Bernas said Ms Arroyo's action could not be described any other way as she knew full well that the Supreme Court had already ruled in 1997 that an enabling law was needed to amend the Charter through a people's initiative.

Bernas spoke a day after the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines voiced alarm over the Palace-backed signature campaign to support the shift from a presidential to a parliamentary form of government. The shift would allow Ms Arroyo to rule as president and prime minister until at least 2010.

Reacting to the CBCP statement, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said: "We respect the views expressed by the CBCP on the people's initiative and we assure them that the government shares the same ideals of freedom and democracy. Just like the Church, we also listen to the voice of the people and we will strive to serve their paramount interests."

"We will invoke transparency in this undertaking and we will make sure that the authentic will of the people will prevail," he said in a radio interview.

The CBCP pastoral letter decrying the signature drive moved Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez again to go on the warpath.

One of Ms Arroyo's chief defenders, Gonzalez hit "leftist elements" in the Church hierarchy and said the CBCP was insulting the Filipinos' intelligence when it warned that the people's initiative was "dangerously unclear and open to manipulation by groups with self-serving interests."

He said that although the Church could be very conservative on some issues, "in some instances they are very liberal in their criticisms" of the Arroyo administration.

"And the leftist elements in the Church are part of the liberal side of society ... There are left-leaning churchmen," he said, adding these people could no longer "hide their heads under the sand."

"I'm sorry, the Church will not like that statement, but I'm expressing a view that is basically factual," said Gonzalez.

Bernas spoke before some 200 people from the academe, non-government organizations, lawyers' groups and the Church.

Asked whether the high court would allow such an affront from the President, Bernas said the people would find out once the court ruled on the petition from the Abakada party-list group urging it to revisit its 1997 ruling.

He said that for a people's initiative to be constitutional, Congress must pass a law that prescribes the form, not the substance, of the exercise, and designate the date and venue and the manner of supervising such an initiative.

Amend, not revise

Bernas said the ongoing exercise was unconstitutional "because it calls for a change of structure of the government from presidential to parliamentary and that is revision."

Under the Constitution, a people's initiative is a tool for amending provisions of the Charter and not for revising it, he said.

Bernas also said the move to amend the Constitution now was not as urgent as Malacanang wanted the public to believe.

When asked if Ms Arroyo violated the Constitution by endorsing the people's initiative, Bernas said she might have her own interpretation of the law that should be strongly argued in a proper forum.

The CBCP pastoral letter said the people's initiative was "dangerously unclear and open to manipulation by groups with self-serving interests."

Palace assurance

Speaking on radio, Bunye assured that the government was committed to carrying out Charter reforms, "but only and always within the parameters that are sanctioned by the Constitution, the Supreme Court and the Commission on Elections."

He said the high court and the Comelec "were imbued with enough authority to address all attendant legal questions and issues regarding the people's initiative."

Some of Ms Arroyo's critics had questioned the integrity of the Comelec and expressed concern over the Supreme Court's independence considering that 11 of its 15 members were appointees of Ms Arroyo.

Church carried away?

On the CBCP's expressed concern about the public's lack of sufficient information, Bunye said Malacanang would not get directly involved in educating the public and that the best it could do was appeal to the public to keep an open mind on how changing the Constitution could lead to solutions to age-old problems.

"(The information drive) is the responsibility of the different organizations, members of the academe and those with advanced knowledge of the Constitution," said Bunye.

Presidential Chief of Staff Michael Defensor also defended Ms Arroyo.

"There is nothing wrong and illegal in endorsing the people's initiative since this was part of the platform of government even before and during the elections. Any initiative or undertaking by the people, groups, NGOs and individuals in line with her programs and principles will always be supported by her," said Defensor.

In a telephone interview, Gonzalez said the CBCP could have been "carried away" by emotion as a result of some reported irregularities in the signature collection.

An insult

"Just because there are few reports of some falsified signatures, that is already accepted hook, line and sinker and they condemn the entire process. I think that is not correct," he said.

Gonzalez said the CBCP and the Church should step aside and see where the people's initiative would lead to, instead of making "speculative" statements.

"Every time our people do something, they are always being manipulated ... That's an insult to the intelligence and the maturity of our people. Why can we not give them a chance and find out for ourselves, then assail it later on," he said.

Copyright 2006 Inquirer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[mosimos]

The dead and the missing signed up for Cha cha. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Back tot he old Marcos days.

http://www.tribune.net.ph/nation/20060516nat1.html

[mosimos]

The National Printing Office was being charged to print the Cha CHa forms plus the the issuance of the Primer on Cha cha.

Government funds are being used for this useless activity instead of spending it for poverty alleviation and job generation.

[mannyamador]

That's why I think the people behind the so-called "people's initiative" should charged with misuse of public funds. They are cheating the public.

[mosimos]

Paterno cites flaws in Cha-cha provisions


A scenario reminiscent of the Marcos era could happen if Malacañan succeeds in winning the proposed amendments to the 1987 Constitution.

This possibility was disclosed Wednesday by former senator and Constitutional Commission delegate Vicente Paterno, who claimed there are "disturbing portions" in Malacañan’s proposed amendments that have not been fully explained to the people.

Paterno warned that Malacañan’s plans, which include the no-election provision, will "assure that the interim parliament [2007-2010] will be filled with tried and proven allies who would be ready to do President Arroyo’s bidding."

Paterno explained that in a normal parliamentary system, the head of the government is the prime minister, who is elected by the members of the parliament.
The members of the Cabinet are also members of the parliament who are elected by the people.

The president’s duties under the parliamentary system are largely ceremonial, like opening the parliament, dissolving it upon advice of the prime minister and receiving the credentials of new ambassadors. As head of state, the president serves as the symbol of national unity.

But under the proposed amendments, it is President Arroyo who will appoint the members of the Cabinet, Paterno said.

[Gwynhuever]

@springfield...are you being pointedly ignored or what?? hasta ko gahulat sa tubag kay normally abtik man motubag pero morag mobotirik na lang na imo tiyan kinaon sa pop corn bro while waiting sa tubag....

[filipinoako2000200]

I think this issue is dead!

[mosimos]

DZMM: Pero hindi naman po 'yon ang pinagdedebatehan natin dito. Sinasabi po ng Sigaw ng Bayan Movement na na-verify na, na-certify na 'yung mahigit 5 milyong pirma. Pero sabi nga n'yo baka sa ibang mga lokalidad. Pero definitely sa kabuuan hindi pa dumadaan ng COMELEC 'yan?[/b]

Jimenez (Comelec) Opo.

DZMM: At again, bottom line dito. Sa ngayon po sa bawat locality doon po ang pag-verify niyan, pag-certify niyan tapos magkakaroon na ng pag-file ng petition sa COMELEC para sa isang plebesito?

Ganoon po 'yon.

DZMM: Meantime, ang kumpirmado hindi pa ito nase-certify at nabe-verify kahit na saang COMELEC locality. Wala pa po?

Wala pa po.

DZMM: Pero nakita n'yo po ang katibayan na nagpapatunay na may mga bumangon po na patay?

Mayroon pong mga signatures na hindi po dapat isama na tinanggal din po namin agad.