Senators authorize Senate President to file petition vs. people's initiative

Senators on Tuesday adopted a resolution that authorizes the Senate President to question before the proper tribunal the controversial people's initiative to amend the 1987 Constitution.

Proposed Senate Resolution 920 was sponsored by Majority Leader Joel Villanueva and eventually adopted by the chamber.

The resolution authorizes the Senate President to:

-file, as may be necessary, the appropriate action before the proper tribunal to challenge the constitutionality, validity, and irregularities relating to the people's initiative to amend the Constitution

-engage the services of counsel/s to prepare the appropriate action and all related pleadings and appear and argue before such tribunal/s for this purpose

"In light of these Supreme Court decisions and the ongoing people's initiative represented by Atty. Anthony A. Abad, et. al., there may be a need to file the appropriate action before the proper tribunal," Villanueva said in his resolution.

The people's initiative being referred to in the resolution was led by People’s Initiative for Modernization and Reform Action (PIRMA).

In the signature pages that were submitted to the Commission on Elections, the voters were asked if they were in favor of amending Article 17, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution by allowing all members of Congress to jointly vote on proposed constitutional amendments in a constituent assembly.

This is a departure from the existing provision, which does not explicitly state whether the House of Representatives and the Senate should vote jointly or separately on proposed amendments to the Charter via constituent assembly.

Villanueva cited the Supreme Court ruling in Santiago vs. Comelec, which declared Republic Act 6735 or the Initiative and Referendum Act, "inadequate" to cover the system for people's initiative.

He likewise mentioned a related SC resolution on the case of Lambino vs. Comelec which upheld the ruling in the Santiago case.

Earlier in the day, two retired SC justices talked about the high court’s decision on Lambino v. Comelec in 2006 and said that the high tribunal did not reverse its decision on Santiago v. Comelec in March 1997.

Retired SC Justices Adolfo Azcuna Jr. and Antonio Carpio, two of the justices that decided on the Lambino v. Comelec case in 2006, shared their opinion during the Senate inquiry into the controversial people's initiative for Charter change.

Under the Santiago vs Comelec ruling, the SC held that RA 6735 is inadequate to cover the system of initiative on amendments to the Constitution and that it failed to provide sufficient standards for subordinate legislation.

On Monday, the Comelec suspended all proceedings related to the ongoing people’s initiative.

The “indefinite” suspension includes the acceptance of signature sheets by the local Comelec offices pending the review and revision of the guidelines.

The Comelec decision came after Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III earlier announced the possible filing of a petition questioning the poll body’s authority to receive the signature sheets from the ongoing campaign for people’s initiative.

Pimentel said there is no law that authorizes Comelec to do such “ministerial duty.” – VBL, GMA Integrated News