Senators welcomed on Tuesday President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s pronouncement that he does not see Charter Change (Cha-cha) as a priority even as several lawmakers push to amend the Constitution.

Senate Majority leader Joel Villanueva said there are laws already in place to attract more foreign investors and the Senate itself is doing more work to improve the country’s economy.

Villanueva said the senators need to study the effects of amendment to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, Foreign Investments Act, and Public Services Act to encourage more foreign direct investments.

“Tuloy lang po tayo sa trabaho dito sa Senado at kasama po dyan ang mga pagdinig sa (We just continue the work here in the Senate and this includes hearings on) Committee on Constitutional Amendments,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Senator Grace Poe said the pronouncement of President Marcos will definitely affect the consensus on the need for charter change.

“Kung hindi susuporta ang Pangulo, mas uunahin ng kongreso ang mga nasa priority list tulad ng (If the President will not support, the Congress will deal with priority list first like the) Internet Transactions Act or CDC bill,” Poe said in another statement.

Poe suggested that new laws intended for foreign investments like amendments on the Public Service Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and Foreign Investments Act should also be discussed by lawmakers in charter change public consultations.

“Kung foreign investments lang din ang usapin (If it is about foreign investments), it might not be relevant to go around the public asking if they agree to term extensions or other non-economic provisions,” she said.

Also agreeing with President Marcos, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano said he will focus instead on pursuing measures pertinent to values, prices, jobs and income.

Cayetano admitted that a lot needs to be changed in the Constitution but noted that some of it are “very political.”

“Ngayon galing sa (Coming from the) pandemic, additional distraction talaga (really). Madi-distract lang tayo (We will just be distracted),” the lawmaker said.

Undeterred by the President’s pronouncement, Senator Robinhood Padilla urged Filipinos to support his call for a Constitutional Assembly that aims to amend some of the Constitution’s economic provisions.

“Sana mga kababayan, itong mga economic provision na ito maisagawa natin dahil ito ginawa ng mga kapitbahay natin sa Asya at sila masigabo na (Hopefully my countrymen, we can work on these economic provisions because our progressive Asian neighbors have already done these),” Padilla said in a radio interview also on Tuesday.

Padilla clarified he harbors no ill feelings toward Marcos.

“’Pag titingnan po natin ang dati niyang interview noong siya po ay mambabatas, naniniwala siya noon na kailangan ng economic provisions sa Saligang Batas. Kailangan magbukas tayo sa foreign investment. Pero siyempre presidente siya, wala na ‘yan sa mandato niya, tama lang po ‘yan (The President, when he was a lawmaker, believed in amending economic provisions in the Constitution to bring in more foreign investments. Now that he is the President, this is not his mandate anymore so there’s nothing wrong with it),” he said.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri told reporters that he sees no problem with what Padilla is doing.

“Trabaho niya yan bilang (It is his job as the) chairman of the Constitutional Amendments. Hayaan natin siya sa trabaho niya. Pero pagdating sa plenaryo, pagdating ng Rules Committee, pagbibigyan po natin ang priorities, ang nakabinbin pang (Let him do his job. But when it comes to the plenary, in the Rules Committee, we will prioritize the pending) 19 LEDAC [Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council] priority measures,” Zubiri said.

Senator Imee Marcos said changing the Consitution might be a good idea but noted that it is not timely given the country’s current situation.

“Everybody has agreed naman kasi na ‘yung (because the) economic provisions kailangan palitan (needed to be changed). Wala namang ibang tututol. Ang problema pag binuksan mo yung Saligang Batas, talagang kakalkalin lahat. Hindi maiiwasan ‘yun. Kaya’t (No one will disagree, The problem is when you open the Constitution, everything will be scrutinized. It can’t be avoided. That’s why) given the state of our economy and health threats that face us today, ‘yung kapatid ko matagal nang sinasabi talaga na huwag muna yung constitutional issues kasi mahabang usapin yan. Baka cannot afford tayo ngayon (my brother have long been saying not to discuss constitutional issues because it will be a long discussion. We could not afford it right now),” Marcos told reporters.

In an interview after arriving from his Japan state visit, President Marcos expressed confidence that the country can achieve its goals within the present constitutional framework.

“There’s so many other things that we need to do first, that we can still do, we can achieve,” the President said. (With a report from Leonel Abasola/PNA) 

Photo credit: Official Gazette website