To ensure that the team running the government would be “solid,” Senator Win Gatchalian is proposing a bill mandating a “tandem vote” for presidential and vice-presidential candidates, since their platforms are the same.
If they are allies, Gatchalian related that in the event something happened to the President, the Vice President can continue his programs.
Instead of split voting, selecting a single ticket would be easier for the voters as a vote for a particular presidential candidate would also mean casting a vote for his or her vice-presidential running mate, Gatchalian explained.
Considering the next round of poll exercises is just around the corner, the senator said he will pursue the amendment in the 1987 Constitution for future national elections.
He said there is no more time for this due to the upcoming polls, he will raise this topic under a new leadership.
Gatchalian is seeking another six-year term in the Senate.
He cited the need to have the election for president and vice president patterned after a similar practice in the United States to ensure that the selection of the two highest officials of the country will come from the same political party or affiliation.
In choosing a president to vote, the chosen running mate (vice president) should be considered.
Under Section 4, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution, “the President and the Vice President shall be elected by direct vote from the people for a term of six years which shall begin at noon on the 30th day of June next following the day of the election and shall end at noon of the same date six years thereafter.”
Gatchalian said he is studying to introduce a piecemeal amendment to the Constitution to pave the way for the election of the two highest government officials as a single ticket.