Senate mulling petition vs. Cha-cha signature campaign, Pimentel says

The Senate is planning to file a petition to stop the signature campaign for the people’s initiative in a bid to amend the 1987 Constitution before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) or the Supreme Court (SC), Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said Wednesday.

According to Pimentel, the Senate will have a “planning session” this weekend but the case is already prepared and they only have to discuss the “finishing touches.”

The suggestion to seek legal actions on the ongoing people’s initiative was first floated by Pimentel during the Senate session on Tuesday where all senators also released a manifesto against the ongoing signature campaign.

Pimentel pointed out that the Senate can file a case on this “justiciable controversy” and question the Comelec’s receipt of the petition containing the signatures for the people’s initiative even if it is unclear who are behind it.

“Yes, cases "directed" at Comelec for receiving signatures from an unknown entity and executing ‘its ministerial duty of counting signatures,” Pimentel told reporters when asked about his suggestion.

“Why do they even have this ministerial duty? They don’t even know who they owe this alleged duty to. And for what purpose? ” he added.

Asked where the case can be filed, Pimentel said it can be filed at the Comelec to “ask them to stop what they are doing” or the SC to “prohibit Comelec from continuing to do what they have been doing under their justification of a ministerial duty.”

In the signature pages that were submitted to Comelec, the voters were asked if they were in favor of amending Article 17, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution by allowing all members of Congress to jointly vote on proposed constitutional amendments in a constituent assembly.

Bad faith?

Meanwhile, Pimentel and Senator Sonny Angara said that the Senate deliberations on the Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6 are “suspended” because the people’s initiative is apparently continuing and that there are reports that congressmen are behind it.

Last week, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri revealed that President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. himself bucked efforts to amend the 1987 Constitution through a people's initiative.

The Senate chief said Marcos had asked the Senate to take the lead in reviewing the economic provisions of the Constitution.

This prompted Zubiri, together with Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, and Angara to file Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6 which proposed amendments to certain economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.

It included reforms in the Public Services Act, education, and advertising industry by adding the phrase "unless otherwise provided by law."

The RBH was agreed to be adopted by the House of Representatives.

“Our question is: Why are congressmen in effect pursuing two modes? There is bad faith somewhere,” Pimentel said.

Angara, in an interview on Dobol B TV, shared the same information and said that the Senate has prioritized its “existence.”

According to Angara, the senators were supposed to deliberate on the RBH 6 but they noticed that the people’s initiative still pushes through.

“Kung itutuloy pa ang people’s initiative, siyempre, ang pakiramadam ng mga senador e dapat parang unahin ‘yun, dahil dito parang under threat ‘yung Senado,” he said.

(If the people's initiative will push through, senators feel we should prioritize RBH 6. The Senate seems to be under threat.)

“Palagay ko hindi matutuloy ang economic provisions hanggang hindi isinasantabi itong people’s initiative dahil lumalabas na hindi s’ya totoong people’s initiative at ang mga nasa likod nito ay mga pulitiko talaga,” he added.

(I think the changes in the economic provisions will not push through if we do not set aside the people's initiative because it seems that politicians are behind it.)

Angara also mentioned that the Senate is gearing up to investigate the people’s initiative, particularly the allegations that Filipinos were offered social aid in exchange for their signatures.

“Sa Senado, maaring magkakaroon na ng mga imbestigasyon diyan dahil may mga lumalapit na mga tao na sinasabi talaga na unang-una, hindi pinaliwanag sa kanila ang pinipirmahan sila at pangalawa, sinabihan sila na hindi sila makakatanggap ng ayuda whether kung ano anong programa ng gobyerno,” he said.

(There may be an investigation at the Senate because there are claims that the people who signed did not understand what it's for. There are also those who said they only signed because they were told that they will not get aid if they did not sign.)

Angara also said that a rift between the Senate and the House of Representatives is possible.

“D’yan na papunta ‘yan baka hindi maiwasan. Maganda na talagang itigil na ang people’s initiative dahil kitang-kita na sa palagay ko,” he said.

(It may come to that. It's better to stop the people's initiative because it's been exposed.)

On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said that many of his colleagues are no longer interested in amending the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution through RBH No. 6 because the leaders of the House of Representatives are behind the people's initiative.

Speaker Martin Romualdez, in response, explained that the House of Representatives facilitates the democratic process of a people's initiative but noted that this role excludes direct involvement in the signature collection. —VAL, GMA Integrated News