Con-com approves shift to parliamentary form of government

The 55-member presidential consultative commission (con-com), tasked to recommend amendments to the Constitution, approved on Wednesday night the proposed shift to a parliamentary form of government.

"Subject only to styling and formatting, the commission has approved the shift from a presidential-bicameral form of government to parliamentary with a unicameral parliament," former University of the Philippines president and con-com chairman Jose Abueva said.

Abueva said the proposal to change the country’s form of government to a parliamentary-unicameral form was first made during the 1971 Constitutional Convention by new con-com commissioner and La Union Gov. Victor Ortega.

"It is a drastic shift that Ortega had initiated as early as the 1971 Con-Con. As early as then, it was decided to adopt a parliamentary government. However, we were overtaken by events and martial law was imposed and we had a different form of government," he said.

"We hope that the idea that was initiated in the 1971 con-com will now be implemented," Abueva added.

Under the proposed parliamentary form of government, the powers of the executive and the legislative will rest with the prime minister and members of the Cabinet.

Members of parliament will elect among themselves the prime minister who will serve as the head of government and the president would serve as head of state with only ceremonial powers.

The president, with a non-renewable term of five years, would have the "power" to ceremonially appoint the prime minister within seven days following the latter’s election by members of parliament; convene the parliament following the election of its members; dissolve the parliament when the prime minister and his Cabinet receive a vote of no confidence; declare a state of emergency or a state of war on advice of the prime minister; accredit ambassadors; promulgate all laws, treaties and international agreements; address messages to the parliament; and receive the annual reports of the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Tribunal and the Constitutional Commissions within 30 days from the opening of Parliament.

"The president will be the symbol of our national unity and sovereignty. We do not hear about the presidents of Singapore, India and Israel but they are important to their people," Abueva said.

He said after a parliament member is elected to be president by his or her fellow legislators, he or she will resign as a member of parliament and from his political party. The con-com proposed that the parliament should have 250 members.

The elected prime minister, who would also serve a term of five years but is eligible for reelection, would serve as head of government and be assisted by a Cabinet composed mostly of members of the ruling majority party.

The Cabinet will also be composed of experts from various fields whose expertise may be helpful to government, the con-com said.

The prime minister and his cabinet could be removed from power through a vote of no confidence from members of the ruling party. The removed prime minister would then be replaced by another member of the ruling political party.

Abueva said that the prime minister can only be voted out of office during his first year or fifth year in office and only after a "major lapse" in governance.

Members of parliament, according to the con-com, would be selected by the people through an election in which local officials such as mayors and governors would also be elected. Local officials would also serve for five years, and could run for reelection.

Meanwhile, Ortega expressed confidence that the shift to a parliamentary form of government would be for the country’s good.

"We have to look forward that we can mature politically. We can mature quickly under a parliamentary system," he said.

Ortega explained that there will be a more effective mechanism for checks and balances in government under the parliamentary form.

"There will be no concentration of power in an individual. While we fuse together the executive and the legislative, the concentration of power will be in a body (prime minister and cabinet)," he said.

Abueva dismissed fears that the prime minister and the members of the majority political party that elected him to power could turn parliament into a dictatorship or create an atmosphere of patronage between the prime minister and members of the majority political party.

"We expect the opposition to be very active and there will be the watchdogs such as media, the church, business groups and civil society who will make sure that it will not happen," he said.

"There will still be watchdogs. It is not true that we will be lacking in counter-powers," Abueva added.

The con-com expects amendments to the Charter to be approved by the people in a plebiscite and a new form of government to be set in place when President Arroyo’s term ends in 2010.