Through constitutional amendments

THE Party-list Coalition Foundation, Inc. (PCFI) has expressed full support to efforts in the House of Representatives to amend the 1987 Constitution, particularly its restrictive economic provisions, as a way to attract more foreign investments in the country and generate more income to fund pro-poor programs of the government, House Deputy Majority Leader and Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre, PCFI spokesperson, said.

Acidre said the coalition, composed of 57 Party-list representatives led by Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, voted with the majority of lawmakers in the lower house to approve on final reading Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 6, which calls for a constitutional convention (con-con) that would propose the said amendments.

“The Partylist Coalition Foundation, Inc. affirms its strong support in favor of the Resolution of Both Houses No. 6, which calls on Congress to convene a constitutional convention to propose Charter amendments,” the PCFI said.

“The decision of our bloc to support said resolution is an important step in generating discussions on the possible amendments to our 1987 Constitution, more particularly on its restrictive economic provisions that place the Philippines in rank 89 out of 176 countries on the The Heritage Foundation’s 2023 Index of Economic Freedom Report,” the PCFI further expressed.

RBH 6 was principally authored by Speaker Martin G. Romualdez, Majority Leader Manuel Jose “Mannix” M. Dalipe, Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte, Cagayan de Oro City 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who chairs the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments; and the Kapatiran Party.

It was approved Monday by the House of Representatives with 301 affirmative votes, one abstention and six negative votes.

“We thank the steadfast leadership of House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez for initiating the discussion and facilitating the passage of this important resolution, which opens for review our Constitution,” the PCFI said.

“The Constitution is the fundamental law of the land upon which all laws must conform. It is only imperative that our laws as well as the institutions that keep them must keep pace with the changing needs of our time,” the PCFI said.

RBH 6 expresses the House of Representatives resolve to call a con-con, noting that among the modes of amending the Charter, calling a convention “would be the most transparent, exhaustive, democratic, and least divisive means of implementing constitutional reforms.”

Speaker Romualdez has earlier said investment reform by way of tweaking the Constitution’s economic provisions could drastically improve the country’s economic and investment environment.

The PCFI said the PCFI agrees with the House leader, saying, “While amending the Constitution is not a panacea to development, it may facilitate generating solutions for the current social ills pervading our country.”

“By commencing the process to review the Constitution, we heed the call of our constituents – our bosses, to do more to alleviate their plight and accelerate our efforts toward national progress,” the PCFI said.