House ready to transmit federalism draft to Senate

FILE: FILE: The House of Representatives is expected to submit to the Senate the draft resolution of the proposed shift to a federal form of government, an administration solon said. (Photo: House of Representatives of the Philippines/Facebook)

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives is expected to submit to the Senate the draft resolution of the proposed shift to a federal form of government, an administration solon said.

Southern Leyte Rep. Roger Mercado, chair of the House committee on constitutional amendments, said in a radio interview that only four representatives will interpellate on Concurrent Resolution 09 that will craft a constituent assembly that will draft the constitution for the federal government.

“We started it at the plenary last Dec. 13, I think it will end in January. So by February, it can be transmitted to the senators for their concurrence,” Mercado said over radio dzBB.

House leaders spearheaded by Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez appeared to be hurrying the draft of the federal constitution to integrate into the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan election in May the referendum of it.

Mercado said the House supermajority coalition favors constituent assembly (con-ass) as the manner of voting over the ‘pricey’ constitutional convention (con-con), which Davao Rep. Karlo Nograles said will cost P7 billion, and people’s initiative (PI).

The solon said administration lawmakers expressed openness to vote separately from their Senate equivalents similar to what they did when Congress voted to extend martial law declaration in Mindanao.

“I think Speaker and fellow lawmakers are amenable to separate voting. We are willing to vote separately. That is my personal view after I have talked to other members, they don’t have a problem with that,” Mercado said.

However, Mercado didn’t clarify if counting of votes will be done separately or jointly.

Citing the case of the martial law extension, the voting from the joint session of the bicameral Congress was done separately but the counting was done jointly.

The lawmaker also said the concurrent resolution will just implicate a minor amendment, shutting down a total revision of the 1987 Constitution.

Congress will resume its sessions on Jan. 15 after the break.