Villanueva amid Cha-cha signature campaign: Stop fooling people for personal gain

Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva on Thursday called out the people behind an alleged bribery campaign to gain signatures for Charter change, saying they are fooling the Filipino people for their own interests. 

Some lawmakers said they have received reports of people being paid P100 in exchange for their signature on a people’s initiative petition to revise the 1987 Constitution.

“Tigilan na po ang panlilinlang at pananakot para lamang unahin ang pansariling interes ng mga ganid sa pwesto. Tigilan na po ang paglapastangan at pagmamanipula sa ating mga kababayan. Marunong silang mag-isip. Hindi nabibili ang kanilang opinyon. Hindi for sale ang Pilipino,” Villanueva said.

(Stop deceiving and scaring the public just to advance the personal interests of ambitious individuals. Stop abusing and manipulating our people. They can think for themselves and their opinion is not for sale. The Filipino is not for sale.)

He also said some people were deprived of social assistance when they refused to sign the petition.

“Huwag po nating linlangin ang taong bayan na kailangan natin ang Charter change para solusyunan ang problema ng lipunan,” he said.

(Let us not fool the people that we need Charter change to address the nation's problems.)

Charter change will not address the problem of hunger, unemployment, the looming El Niño crisis, and the rising cost of basic commodities, he added.

While he did not name any individual, Villanueva said the move to amend the charter is intended to disband the Senate.

“Magpakatotoo na lang po kayo. Alam naman po natin na ang totoong dahilan kaya pinagpipilitan nilang buwagin ang Senado ay para kontrolin ang kapangyarihan sa ilalim ng unilateral o iisang Kongreso. Higit po sa lahat, nais nilang palawigin ang kanilang mga termino,” Villanueva said.

(Let's be honest. We know that the real reason they want to abolish the Senate is to gain control through a unilateral Congress. More than anything, they want to extend their terms.)

“This is not just about protecting the Senate as an institution, but also about defending the rights of every Filipino whom I swore to serve and protect since I entered public service,” he added.

Several senators slammed the alleged signature campaign for People’s Initiative, including Imee Marcos, Jinggoy Estrada, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.

While he believes that the time is ripe to amend the 1987 Constitution, Senate constitutional amendments and revision of codes chairman Robin Padilla also took a swipe at politicians allegedly using the people in amending the charter. 

On Wednesday, Marcos filed a resolution seeking an investigation into the alleged pay-offs. — BM, GMA Integrated News