Philippine lawmakers move towards federal system of govt

MANILA: Philippine lower house lawmakers voted on Tuesday to convene the chamber as a constitutional assembly, looking to amend the 30-year-old charter and shift to a system of federal government, allowing the president up to two terms in office.

The switch to a federal system was one of the key planks of President Rodrigo Duterte’s election campaign, aimed to remedy what he saw as neglect by a Manila-centric political establishment that has left provinces in perpetual poverty.

In a late afternoon session, Duterte´s allies, who dominate the nearly 300-member house, abruptly terminated debates and voted to convene an assembly to begin changing some constitutional provisions. Opposition lawmaker Edgar Erice protested against the speed of the decision, describing it as “railroading”.

“They did not even allow a congressman to finish his interpellation and he was run over by the ´Cha-Cha´ train,” he added. The majority of lawmakers favour the expansion of the two legislative chambers, longer terms for all elected officials, greater fiscal autonomy for provinces, a prime minister as the head of government, and a separately elected president. They plan to complete their amendments within two months and hold a referendum in May this year. A total of 186 lawmakers attended Tuesday´s session.