Bayani Fernando prefers charter change only after 2010

MANILA, Philippines — Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Bayani Fernando on Friday said he is for amending the Philippine Constitution, but only after the 2010 election. He also said the mode of changing the national charter should be via constitutional Convention (Concon), not via a constituent assembly (Con-ass). “Concon would be more prudent to give us time to study and for the people to understand," said Fernando, who has declared his intention to seek the presidency in 2010. Under the “Con-ass" proposal by allies of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in the House of Representatives, both houses of Congress would transform themselves into a constituent assembly to rewrite the charter. Concon, which is being pushed by most senators, Catholic leaders and other Church groups, and various sectors of society, would be constituted by delegates elected by district. A constituent assembly is considered to be more economical but critics fear that it would be exploited by incumbent legislators to remove limits to their term of office. Fernando said constitutional amendments should be discussed after 2010 so that the public would not misunderstand the intentions for those pushing for it. “Anyone who is in power is suspect," he said. He also said he does not believe that President Arroyo categorically supported the Chacha campaign. While denying that the President is behind the renewed Charter change moves, Malacaňang has brushed aside the statement of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) that Arroyo should tell her political allies to stop pushing for constitutional amendments before the 2010 elections. “Basta, ayaw kasi naming pansinin iyan kasi ayaw naming mamulitika e. We want to focus on the economy," Presidential Management Staff director general Cerge Remonde said. Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, CBCP president, has said any move to amend the laws must come only after the 2010 elections and through a Concon. He also welcomed the statement of El Shaddai leader Bro. Mike Velarde that he would mobilize his members to join the anti-Chacha protests. Remonde said Malacanang is not alarmed by the anti-Chacha noise because the Chacha movement did not come from them. He said the political noise is really part of the dynamics of democracy and that the stability of democratic institutions despite all the noise showed that the country has “attained a certain degree of political maturity that we can be proud of for the rest of the world." - GMANews.TV