People’s Initiative ginugulo, maling impormasyon ikinakalat —Garbin
KUNG anu-anong isyu ang ipinupukol laban sa People’s Initiative upang magulo ang panukala na maamyendahan ang economic provisions ng 1987 Constitution para dumami ang mamumuhunan sa bansa.
Ayon kay dating House Committee on Constitutional Amendments chairperson Alfredo Garbin ng Ako Bicol party-list ang pagsusulong ng People’s Initiative upang maamyendahan ang Konstitusyon ay pinapayagan.
“The Preamble to the Constitution introduces the sovereign Filipino people as the authors of the Constitution, and reveals the intent to establish a Government that embodies their ideals and aspirations, promote the common good, and conserve and develop the country’s patrimony,” ani Garbin.
“The People’s Initiative to propose an amendment to the Constitution is a direct action of the people as the authors of the Constitution. An action which does not run thru any intermediary, which should be perceived as a reflection of the people’s lack of faith in the current set-up for proposing changes to the Constitution. It is an expression of their will to obtain what is intended,” dagdag pa nito.
Sinabi ni Garbin na kung anu-anong pananakot at maling impormasyon ang ipinupukol sa People’s Initiative upang mapigilan ito.
“Fear mongering and doom saying has hounded the People’s Initiative. Assertions of total foreign ownership of Filipino land, removal of term limits and the possibility of no elections come 2025 or 2028 are being thrown left and right to suppress the movement. That is not the desire of this initiative,” saad pa ni Garbin.
Ayon kay Garbin malinaw na ang isinusulong na pagbabago sa People’s Initiative ay ang maamyendahan ang economic provisions ng Konstitusyon na naglilimita sa pamumuhunan na maaaring dalhin ng mga dayuhan sa bansa.
Ipinunto ni Garbin na matapos na makapaghain ng panukalang pagbabago ang mga senador at kongresista ay magsasagawa ng plebisito upang bumoto ang publiko kung sila ay pabor sa mga pagbabagong ipinanukala.
“After hurdling the requirements of any of these three methods of proposal, the second step is the ratification of the people in a plebiscite, where it is required that a majority of votes cast in the plebiscite should be for the change. If majority is not attained, the proposal shall be considered to have failed. If the majority vote is obtained, this is only the time that it can be said that change has been in fact made,” sabi ni Garbin.
“Thus, it is not correct to say that the floodgates to a wave of amendments and revisions that will ‘erode the nation’ will be opened if the Senate and House votes jointly during the proposal stage, for the sovereign Filipino people will act as the final gate-keeper or the bastion of democracy during the plebiscite,” dagdag pa nito.
