Roque: Amendment limiting freedom of speech, expression not from Palace

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Saturday clarified that the proposed constitutional amendment that "limits" freedom of speech and expression did not come from Malacañang.

"I'd like to clarify that the Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat is not or does not have the rank of a Cabinet member. This means that when they spoke, they did not speak as alter-ego of the President," the spokesperson said at a briefing in Kalibo, Aklan.

"So that is a recommendation of the Secretariat. It is not in any way the position of the President," he added.

Deputy House Speaker Fredenil Castro, chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendment's subpanel, had said in a television interview that the proposed inclusion of the "responsible exercise" clause to Article III (Bill of Rights) of the 1987 Constitution came from the presidential panel.

Roque said that recommendations, unless sourced from members of the Cabinet, "cannot bind the President."

He stressed that President Rodrigo Duterte is against moves to amend the Bill of Rights.

"The President is a lawyer. He is a fiscal. The Bill of Rights has remained unchanged from the 1935 Constitution, to the 73 Constitution, to 87 Consititution. As far as free speech is concerned, the President sees no need to ammend it," Roque finished.

Castro said during the House panel's hearing on the proposed federal charter earlier this week said his subpanel found the Bill of Rights acceptable except for Section 4, which protects freedom of speech and expression.

Castro said the freedom of expression and speech have been so "abused" that there is a need for the constitutional provision to be amended.

Free speech has become a hot topic following a decision made by the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to revoke the certificate of incorporation of Rappler for a supposed violation of foreign ownership.

Days after the revocation, a businessman filed a complaint against Rappler over its supposed violation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

This was followed by an order from Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre, tasking the National Bureau of Investigation to probe the media organization for possible criminal violations. —Margaret Claire Layug/ALG, GMA News