BY WENDELL VIGILIA
LEYTE Rep. Richard Gomez yesterday said senators may not be keen on introducing changes to the Charter for “fear” that their terms will be cut short, or their positions relegated to ordinary status if they become regional senators under a new Constitution.
“Maybe because they are afraid that talks would eventually lead to cutting short the term of the senators, from six years going down to four years, maybe that’s it,” Gomez told ANC.
Gomez, who wants the House and the Senate to just convene as a constituent assembly (con-ass) to introduce constitutional amendments, said another concern could be the dissolution of the Senate, something that would happen if a unicameral-parliamentary form of government is adopted.
He said the Senate should answer the questions and discuss their fears with congressmen so that the issues can be threshed out, stressing this gives them more reason to push for a con-ass instead of the constitutional convention (con-con) which the House leadership prefers.
Gomez last week said Speaker Martin Romualdez is now open to con-ass, the mode being pushed by Sen. Robinhood Padilla, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes.
With the Speaker’s openness to con-ass, Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte earlier said there is more reason for Charter change proponents in both the Senate and the House to meet during the six-week congressional break and try finding “common ground” on how to pursue long-needed constitutional reforms this year.
Congress is currently on break and will resume sessions in May.
“Speaker Martin’s openness to any Senate proposal on how to pursue constitutional reform, despite the supermajority support in the House for a con-con to pursue the makeover, augurs well for an early meeting between Charter change proponents in both chambers to try finding a common ground on how to do it before the year is over,” Villafuerte said.
“Hence, the timeliness of holding the week ago called-off meeting on Charter change between Sen. Robin (Padilla) and a House delegation led by Rep. Rufus (Rodriguez) during our legislative break,” added Villafuerte, the president of the National Unity Party (NUP) and one of the lead authors of House Bill (HB) No. 7325 calling for constitutional reform via the con-con route.
