Thursday, December 04, 2008 Oledan: Reviving Cha-cha By Radzini Oledan
THIS week, the House of Representatives tackled the matter on constitutional change, which calls for changes to Sections 2 and 3, Article 12 of the Constitution "to allow the acquisition by foreign corporations and associations and the transfer or conveyance thereto of alienable public and private lands."
Under the law, the proposal to amend the Constitution can only be done in three ways. One, by Congress, after three-fourths of all its members agree to constitute themselves into a Constituent Assembly and another is by a constitutional convention which may be organized either upon approval of two-thirds of all members of Congress, or upon approval by the electorate after a majority of members of Congress agrees to submit the question to a referendum.
The third option is through a popular initiative or upon a petition of at least 12 percent of the total number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three percent of its registered voters.
Popular initiative did not push thru. Instead, Malacanang created the Consultative Commission, which became the technical working group tasked to revise the Constitution. It was composed of 41 representatives from civil society groups. The scheme did not work out. Public interest remains to be a question.
This time, Charter Change is again pursued. What are the implications? The proposal to remove the protectionist provisions of the Constitution will allow the full utilization of natural resources by foreign entities and leasing of agricultural and reclaimed lands.
This is a scenario for the further dislocation of farmers, agricultural workers, and indigenous peoples whose existence is tied to their reverence towards the land. Charter change will also allow foreigners to own mass media and public utilities-- two areas, which play a strategic role in the people's day-to-day lives.
With the full control of foreign companies not only in the economy but also in public utilities and the mass media, the public could only expect their full control in our socio-economic situation and worse, in our national consciousness.
Charter Change is a recipe for national disaster. Email comments to roledan@gmail.com.
