Lawmakers flag alleged 'vote buying' plan for Charter change

Opposition lawmakers Edcel Lagman and Raoul Manuel on Monday accused public officials of buying signatures and tricking people into signing documents that allegedly portray there is a public clamor to make certain changes in the 1987 Constitution.

The lawmakers made the allegations separately. Lagman, Albay 1st District congressman, claims Legazpi City Mayor Alfredo Garbin and Ako Bicol party-list lawmaker Jill Bongalon were present during a January 5 meeting with municipal mayors at the Ellis Hotel in Legazpi City where Ako Bicol party-list coordinators allegedly received an unspecified amount of money to ensure their constituents will provide the required 3% of total voters per municipality for a people’s initiative to gain ground in amending the Constitution.

"Doon sa meeting na 'yon, namigay ng 50% ng 100 pesos per voter. Ang sabi susunod yung balance na 50%. Hindi malaman kung saan galing ang pondo pero ang nandoon sa meeting ay mga ranking members ng Ako Bicol Party-list kaparis ng incumbent Rep. Jil Bongalon at yung former congressman ng party-list na si Pido Garbin. At yung mga nagbigay ng pondo ay yung mga Ako Bicol coordinators," Lagman said in a "24 Oras" report on Monday.

"Sa isang alkalde, 125,000 yung 50%. Yung sa iba mas malaki. At yung iba naman, for example, meron isa, 142,500. Ito ay 50% ng 100 pesos per voter." Lagman alleged

As per Lagman. 3 mayors from his district returned the money.

Time for change?

A People's Initiative is a possible way to amend or make changes to the Constitution.

Last year, House Speaker Martin Romualdez said 2024 is the right time to push for Charter change. Many of his allies in the Lower House said a People's Initiative is the course that it should take since the Senate would hinder a Constitutional Convention after it is approved by the House of Representatives.

Under Republic Act 6735, revisions via the public can happen if a petition for an initiative on the 1987 Constitution must have at least 12% of the total number of registered voters as signatories. For each district, no fewer than 3% of registered voters should sign the petition. The signatures would then be verified by the Commission on Elections.

"Ang kinukuwestiyon ko lang ay yung pag-taint ng proseso, na ito ay bilihan na naman ng boto o petisyon. yun ang kinukuwestiyon ko," Lagman said.

"Sa Omnibus Election Code, bawal ang pagbenta o pagbili ng boto. Ito ay criminal offense," Lagman stressed.

For his part, KABATAAN party-list solon Manuel said his office received reports from the Urban Poor Coordinating Council that certain community leaders are making beneficiaries of government subsidies sign forms pushing for Charter change, telling them that the move is needed in order for them to continue receiving government aid.

Manuel showed a video allegedly showing Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) and Tulong Panghanapbuhay Sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced workers (TUPAD) programs under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) being used in efforts to push for Charter change.

“If the campaign for people’s initiative to amend the Constitution is inspired by noble and patriotic motives, then why buy the people’s will?,” Lagman asked.

According to the Bicolano lawmaker, the buying of signatures for the petition on People’s Initiative is a violation of the Section 261 of the Omnibus Election Code in relation to Section 19 of the Initiative and Referendum Act or Republic Act 6735.

Lagman also cited previous Supreme Court decisions on amending the Charter via People’s Initiative that involved spurious signatures.

 “The Supreme Court rulings in Santiago v. Comelec and Lambino v. Comelec were cited as historical backdrops where people’s initiative had failed. The initial purpose of this charter change by people’s initiative is to make the voting in the Constituent Assembly of representatives and senators or in calling for a Constitutional Convention as joint voting in order to overwhelm by superiority of numbers the Senators by the (House of) Representatives,” Lagman said.

“The next phase of the Cha-cha campaign may be the liberalization of the economic provisions of the Constitution purportedly to induce foreign direct investments and the extension of term limits of elected officials, both of which are not necessary and disruptive of collective efforts to address serious economic concerns which could not be remedied by Charter change,” Lagman surmised.

Whose initiative? 

Manuel is questioning the scheme and motives linking government subsidies to Charter change.

“Marami ang nagpadala nitong form na pinapapirmahan daw sa barangay nila. Para ba ito sa People's Initiative, ang pangatlong ruta para sa Charter change? In the first place, kaninong initiative ba talaga ito? Galing ba ito sa taumbayan? Ito ba ang kagyat na sasagot sa pangunahing mga suliranin ng taumbayan?” Manuel said.

(Many are spreading this form for people to sign in their barangays. Is this for a People’s Initiative, the third route to Charter change? In the first place, whose initiative really is this? Is this from the people? Is this the answer to people’s problems?)

“Tinutulan natin ang maka-dayuhang Charter change sa Kamara at hindi ito isinusulong sa Senado pero pilit na binubuhay,” Manuel added.

(We opposed a Charter change which favored foreigners in Congress and this was not pursued in the Senate but is still being pushed by some.)

Nothing wrong

But for House Ways and Means chairperson Joey Salceda and Bacolod City Mayor Albee Benitez, national chairperson of the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), they see nothing wrong in pursuing Charter change as provided under the 1987 Constitution.

 “There are constitutionally-provided processes of initiating Charter Change, and there is a process for opposing Charter change. Let us go through the process, proponents and opponents alike,” Salceda, Albay’s 2nd District Representative, said in a statement.

“We can’t be rigid on this. We cannot afford not to be flexible. We can’t be held hostage by the Senate. With 316 House members against 24 [Senators], which sentiment should prevail? We are a democracy, so the majority decision should prevail,” Benitez said in a Super Radyo dzBB interview, referring to the House of Representatives being in favor of Charter change.

GMA Integrated News reached out to Malacanang for comment but have yet to receive a reply at the time of this story being published.

In the Senate, Senator Imee Marcos and Senator Jinggoy Estrada denounced such moves.

“Our Constitution is not for sale. We denounce those allegedly bribing districts, LGUs, and potential signatories openly and shamelessly to agree to  a people’s initiative,” Marcos said.

Estrada said it is “unethical and illegal” to solicit signatures of constitutions to petition for cha-cha in exchange of P100 in the guise of supposed people’s initiative.

“This practice clearly violates our laws and undermines the democratic process. The people’s initiative is a constitutional right that should be exercised freely and without coercion,” he said.

“Whoever is behind this sinister move to tinker with the 1987 Constitution should be investigated and prosecuted for engaging in such unlawful activity. The people’s trust in the democratic process must be protected and preserved,” he added.

Marcos also alleged that “congressmen [and] local executives are asked to provide lists of beneficiaries.”

She said these beneficiaries “could be their staff [and] coordinators’ relatives.”

“As always, how to prove? Yari na naman [ang] three frontline social departments- DSWD, DOH, DOLE,” she said.

“Sa Congress mismo galing yan. Yan ang alok sa Region 1, Region 7, sa Leyte, etcetera. [20,000] signatures by January 13, P100 per signature,” she said.

Asked where the supposed bribe came from, Marcos said, “Clearly, from someone with unlimited access and control over listed funds.”

She then mentioned that the “power of the purse is with Congress, not the president,” when asked if her brother, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.on his possible involvement in this alleged bribery.

Garbin and Bongalon respond to Lagman

Garbin, a former congressman, issued a statement in response to Lagman, claiming no money was released during the Jan.5 meeting.

"To be clear, I maintain that there was no such release of money or flow of funds that transpired in the meeting with the purview that it will be in exchange for the voter’s signature. There is nothing illegal that transpired during the meeting. Interestingly, election laws allow campaign expenditures to be incurred by candidates or political parties in order to lodge a campaign and generate votes," Garbin said.

Ako Bicol Rep. Bongalon admitted he was at the meeting as a resource person but also belied Lagman's claims of money changing hands to those present.

"I deny that funds were distributed to the mayors for the purpose of buying votes for the people’s initiative," Bongalon said.

Garbin countered that "the main assertion of Congressman Lagman was that there was no enabling law enacted by Congress to amend the Constitution via People’s Initiative. An assertion shown to be clearly false, as the Supreme Court itself in the case Lambino vs COMELEC, which he cited, upheld the existence of an enabling law of Article XVII, Section 2, or the Constitutional right of the people to amend the Constitution via People’s Initiative. This is a fact which he conceded."

The Legazpi mayor added that,  "Lagman’s new statement is that there is merely a budget of P100/voter constituting 3% of the total voters per municipality comprising their legislative district, conspicuously leaving out that it is in exchange for something. What happened to his earlier statement that “Voters who would sign the people’s initiative will be given P100.00 each” in exchange for their signature? Is this another instance of beck pedaling (sic) and revision on his part in the same press statement?"—RF, GMA Integrated News