Puno interview on his appointment

Do we need a new constitution, that is the first question. The usual answer is we need it to change our structure of government that would allow for more freedom for different ethnic groups. The present democratic structure favors the educated and the moneyed to the millons of the poor and disadvantaged.

Few understand what federalism is all about because it is such a long and esoteric term. That is why during the discussions in the Constitutional Commission organized by former President Gloria Arroyo in 2005, I proposed a distinction between federalism as a concept which is about freedom and as a system of government. 

My own commitment to federalism began in the Third Worldwide conference held in Brussels. I met several levels of understanding of federalism from those who regarded it as a system of government they could learn from others who have successfully implemented the system.  

The implementation was particular to the cultural context and problems of each country.  Switzerland, a small country topped the list of the successful while India, a huge country with varying ethnic cultures. The Philippines, too was there to lead. Leading the group were former Speaker Jose de Venecia and Senator Aquilino Pimentel. Other countries were new and were struggling to understand how it would fit in their as well as those who were struggling to understand it and how to implement it in their own countries. The Philippines was a newcomer and we came as listeners. India was also a listener but already advanced in discussing the problems of the system.

I am glad that former Chief Justice Reynato Puno has been asked to head the Constitutional Commission by President Duterte. The two are like-minded and determined and will draw widespread support as we move on in the coming days.

Before we organized BayanKo as a crowdsourcing group we sought as many opinions as possible from the public at large.  In his speech at the Club Filipino CJ Puno gave a historical account of the nation building by the Philippines. He connected our history as a colony with the difficulties of our efforts for a new constitution made by Filipinos for Filipinos. Soon after that speech a group of us organized BayanKo not without the usual Filipino resistance to new ideas.

At the time, Duterte was the mayor of Davao and was out of the mainstream of leadership that was needed to change the Constitution. Using Facebook, I posted the picture of Mayor Duterte whose popularity was moving in leaps and bounds for a new strong leader for constitutional change primarily with peace in Mindanao in mind. 

Puno was a friend, mid-spoken but just as strong and certain on what the country needed – constitutional change. At the bottom of the pictures of Duterte and Puno  I put the spectacular picture crowd of the more than a million Filipinos who came to Luneta for Duterte’s May 7, 2016 miting de abanse. I knew even then that history and destiny would unite to bring about a new era for the Philippines.

The million crowd on May 7, 2016 miting de abanse of Duterte sparked the light for the new beginning. 

It was the journey that would ultimately lead to Dutere’s campaign promise of a new constitution and the appointment of Puno to lead a constitutional commission. 

It was time to ask Puno some questions. 

CNP: What will be the role of the Concom as it relates to Congress?

Puno: Assuming the ConAss is held, the ConCom can serve as its consultative body of experts. The ConCom will present its own draft of a revised Constitution for consideration by the ConAss.

CNP: Are the procedures being discussed on how the two bodies will work effectively? The present Constitution has proved inimical to the well-being of our people and a mockery of their sovereignty.

First, after doing away with our unitary government, we should design a federal government best suited to our distinct needs. In rearranging the legislative, executive and judicial powers of the federal government, our primary objective should be to cobble a federal government that is strong and united in discharging its task especially of protecting the security of the people against internal and external threats such as those posed by local criminals and foreign terrorists. This will require diagnosing the sources of deadlocks and stand-offs between and among the three branches of government and eliminating them.

Second, we need to correctly divide the powers of government between the federal government and the proposed States or autonomous regions. 

The primary objectives should be: (1) erect a strong central government that can lead the people to progress, keep the union together, permanently and in perpetuity. No state can be allowed to break the union; (2) give appropriate political, economic and fiscal powers to the component states or autonomous regions that will enable them to provide, at the very least, the basic services to their people.

(3) we should liberalize the economy from its undue restrictions to spur its growth without, however, surrendering the economic sovereignty of our country to foreign control and domination.

(4) we should negate the overarching influence of all monopolies and oligarchies, political and economic alike, before fully shifting to federalism. Political dynasties should not be allowed to block the ingress to public office of the more worthy Filipinos. Nor should economic monopolies be allowed to manipulate the market to serve their own interest.

(5) the power of the sovereign people to exercise direct democracy should be expanded. Such powers as recall, referendum and people’s initiative should be revisited to make their exercise easier and more effective. (End of interview).

Aside from Puno, Duterte named 18 other individuals as members of the consultative committee, including former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr., a leading federalism proponent. 

I would like to conclude with Puno’s own words in a judicial decision he once made. “The Filipino people have fought revolutions, by the power of the pen, the strength of the sword and the might of prayer to claim and reclaim their fundamental rights. They set these rights in stone in every constitution they established. I cannot believe and so hold that the Filipinos during that one month from February 25 to March 24, 1986 were stripped naked of all their rights, including their natural rights as human beings. With the extraordinary circumstances before, during and after the EDSA Revolution, the Filipinos simply found themselves without a constitution, but certainly not without fundamental rights.”