“Boldly expend your huge political capital NOW, Mr. President, on changing the ineffective political system”
Charter change can only happen with strong presidential support, along with a well-crafted and properly executed communications plan.
A reader who identifies himself as Kokis Bailes reacted in the same way well-meaning friends have chided me about my charter change advocacy — that the trapos who profit from the present system will not allow such ‘political’ revisions of the charter.
The Speaker and the President cited there is a need to make the country more “welcoming” to foreign investments, and these may need revision of the 1987 Constitution’s economic provisions.
Yet if we look at the most common complaints of foreign business already here which reverberate across the investment capital-rich nations of the world, these are not about the economic restrictions in the charter.
Amendments to the Public Service Act have been legislated, although questions about its violating constitutional restrictions still pend.
If we need to further open up, about the only issues remaining would be land ownership and the exploitation of natural resources. But these would also be the most contentious.
Land ownership in the Philippines is a much more emotional issue than it is to people in the Western hemisphere.
The fear that land prices (already higher in the Philippines than Thailand and Indonesia) will further increase with the influx of foreign buying is quite real.
Foreign control of extractive industries such as mining will be contradicted by environmental groups and even the numerous Church.
Investors shy away from the country because our laws and the corrupt implementors of the laws make running a business more difficult for them than it is in Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand.
And the all-too-often changes in playing rules by both the national government and LGUs.
High cost of electric power and other utilities is another major complaint. Add to that traffic and mobility problems for both cargo and worker transport.
They flock to communist Vietnam, where all land is owned by the state, and leases are allowed for 50 years. Even in China, a 50 to 70 year land lease is acceptable to foreign investors.
Still. as stated in last Monday’s column, I submit that it is the political framework in our 1987 charter that needs revision.
This writer advocates a return to the two-party system under a presidential form of government, and a drastic reduction in the number of elected officials, especially in the local government level.
Taking off from Sen. Padilla’s proposal to have a total 54 senators with four-year terms, I propose instead that we do away with nationally-elected senators and give an equal representation of two senators for each of our 17 regions, for a total 34.
My suggestion addresses in part the cry of the less developed regions about imperial NCR lording it over the allocation of budgetary resources and the Manila-centric policies of government without having to federalize due to economic costs and wealth disparities.
Now a president with a 61 percent mandate, armed with the right reasons for change, should get enough public support for regionalizing the Senate, and a return to the simpler 2-party system which would cut the multi-knotted Gordian confusion of our multi-party flags of convenience, and curtail the proliferation of dynasties.
Would the LGU ‘trapos’ fight the abolition of ‘bokales’ and ‘konsehales?’ Would not a mayor or governor prefer having less ‘baggage’ to carry in campaigns, along with hefty savings on their expenses, minus these multitude of officials?
And wouldn’t the public prefer that their barangay chairs would likewise constitute the local legislatures, pass the budget and ordinances being more attuned to their needs at the barangay level?
Elected municipal mayors as well could be better at crafting legislation, knowing the needs of their respective constituencies.
More like a board of directors crafting policies because they are stakeholders/stockholders in the province.
Here, we merge executive and legislative functions on the local level, and with political maturity evolving, we could then shift to a parliamentary system in the future, as in the French template where presidents are in charge of national security and foreign policy, while a chosen prime minister handles day-to-day management of the economy and other domestic affairs.
With a two-party system, government can absorb remunerating party inspectors at the precinct level, while a shorter list of candidates would also cut massive Comelec expenses, just as the two parties and their candidates save on election costs.
The amount that government spends on remunerating so many elected officials, along with staff and perks under the present system can thus be ploughed back to the taxpayers in the form of better on-the-ground service in health, education, food security and maintaining peace and order.
Am I being too much of a dreamer? Perhaps.
But if an ordinary citizen like me can dream of such major revisions, why not a President who possesses the largest mandate ever?
The biggest problem of this benighted land is its government, a multi-headed hydra that is so costly to maintain yet is service-ineffective.
Simplify the system and reduce the level of political contests every three years into six years with less elective positions is a major, major step into rationalizing the politics of this country and making the public concentrate on economic and social conditions instead of being at the ‘service’ of traditional politicians and family dynasties.
But, as the title of this column states, only IF the President initiates, fully supports, and campaigns for these revisions in the flawed 1987 Constitution that has been in effect for 37 years, longer than the 1973 charter of 13 years and the 34 years when we were under the 1935 Constitution, before martial law was declared.
Boldly expend your huge political capital NOW, Mr. President, on changing the ineffective political system, rather than watch that capital erode as economic headwinds in the next two years become more and more daunting.
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This writer will sign off for the rest of the holiday period, and resume writing on Thursday, Jan 8.
I wish every reader of this esteemed paper all the blessings in this season of grace and well into the coming year.