Executive Summary
The People’s Draft[i] is a crowd-sourced constitution
framed in 2018-2021 at the initiative of Tanggulang
Demokrasya (Tan Dem), Inc.[ii] and PUBLiCUS Asia, Inc.[iii] These organizations of concerned citizens firmly believe
that national transformation may be achieved only if “culture change” comes
with “system change.”
The People’s Draft is the simplest draft. It is a
10-page constitution (with a 2-page ordinance). About 70% of the language is
adopted from previous constitutions (i.e. 1987, 1973, 1935). It uses common
concepts (i.e. president, congress, supreme
court) the people understand.
It is the broadest draft including: (1) “Free and Open Competition” (NO cartelization),
lifting restrictions on entry of capital for job creation, price reduction and
tax generation, subject to safeguards (i.e. foreign investment council) and
reciprocity; (2) “Collegial Governance” (NO one-man rule),
vesting ultimate political power in the parliament and the local councils, for
continuity of plans and programs and integrated law making and implementation,
and (3) “Regional Empowerment” (NO remote governance), devolving
major decision-making powers thru a “bottom-up” not “top-down” approach, based
on right to self-determination.
It consolidates the “executive” and the “legislature” as one
“political branch” for a strong government (i.e. national/regional parliament, council-mayor LGU), but retains the “judiciary” as a
separate “non-political branch” for checks and balances. It phases “regional
decentralization” based on “subsidiarity” and “accession,” establishing a
“unitary state” but enabling the regions to form substates and transition to a
“federal state.” It adopts asymmetric decentralization, where the people may
choose from 3 systems: regional authority (i.e. SBMA), autonomous region (i.e.
BARMM) or substate (i.e. Sabah). NO region is forced to, or prevented from,
creating an autonomous region or substate.
The People’s Draft presents a cost-saving system
of government:
·
Con-Com draft: PhP40,876,211,465.00
est. annual cost
·
PDP-Laban draft: PhP30,327,617,981.00 est.
annual cost
·
People’s Draft:
PhP13,457,281,108.00 est. annual savings
The People’s Draft boosts political
efficiency with:
(1)
NO duplication of legislation;
unicameral assembly avoids bicameral delay and deadlock (i.e. unicameral - 1
approval by congress; bicameral - 3 approvals by house, senate & bicameral
committee);
(2) NO institutional deadlock;
legislation & execution merged in assembly or council; legislators elect
& remove the chief executive;
(3) NO overlapping jurisdiction
of LGUs; City & Municipality as basic LGU; Mayor as primary local official;
(4)
NO bloating of bureaucracy;
Mayors as ex-officio members of provincial board; Mayors and district
Congressmen as ex-officio members of regional assembly, if any; and
(5)
NO excessive politics; local
councils elect local chiefs (i.e. governor, mayor, punong barangay);
Mayors appoint Barangay Kagawad nominated by community associations.
The
People’s Draft anchors political stability with:
(1) NO
term extension for any elective official, including the President,
Vice-President, Senators, Congressmen, all local elective officials;
(2) NO
term reduction for any elective official; Senators elected in May 2022
serve as such until June 2025, and thereafter as ex-officio members of
the new Congress until June 2028;
(3) NO service disruption
for all career officers and employees of the national government and the LGUs;
(4) Sets 5-year term for
Congressmen & Councilors; and
(5) NO reorganization of
Supreme Court; Justices continue old terms under the new Constitution.
The
People’s Draft promotes political democracy that:
(1)
Secures the people’s right to elect the
President or Mayor via team voting; the ballots disclose both the
candidate and the nominee for chief executive (aka electoral college);
(2) Provides equal opportunity to win elective posts with less votes
thru “voting by district” in many small subdistricts (w/ one councilor
each) instead of “voting at large” in one big district (w/ many councilors);
(3) Ensures genuine representation
of sectors & peoples in Congress thru “sectoral voting” instead of
“party-list voting;” seats are apportioned, voters classified, and
organizations registered, by sector & people;
(4) Retains
the 3-term limit for Congressmen and Councilors;
(5)
Bars 2 or more family members
from running in elections in the same national or local constituency;
(6)
Provides for the dissolution of
Congress and fresh elections for a popular vote on fundamental issues;
(7)
Lowers the signature requirement
for people’s initiative and referendum;[iv] and
(8)
Provides
for manual safeguards to automated elections.
The
People’s Draft strengthens political accountability that:
(1)
Imposes immediate accountability on
the chief executive (i.e. president, governor, mayor, punong barangay)
thru removal by “vote of no confidence” (i.e. Congress, local council);
(2)
Provides mid-term accountability by
“recall” of Congressmen; and
(3) Sets widest accountability by limiting “impeachment” to Supreme
Court Justices only (excl. CSC, Comelec, COA & Ombudsman).
The
People’s Draft ensures a stable economy with: (1) NO new taxes by
substates on imports, exports, income, value added, unless allowed by Congress;
(2) NO new laws by substates on currency, banking, insurance,
insolvency, commerce, intellectual property, professions, immigration &
naturalization, unless allowed by Congress; and (3) NO extra budget for
Regional Authorities as regional offices of select line departments[v] will ONLY be integrated and
consolidated thru regional budgeting into the major regions.[vi]
The
People’s Draft champions an inclusive society of the Tri-People
(i.e. Christians, Muslims, Indigenous Peoples) that: (1) Reserves seats
in Congress for labor, farmers, fisherfolk, micro enterprises, youth, Southern
Sultanates & Indigenous Peoples; (2) mandates legal recognition of the
Southern Sultanates, but Sovereignty and ALL political powers are retained by
the People and the Government; and (3) affirms rights of the Indigenous Peoples
to their ancestral lands.
The
People’s Draft promotes the national identity based on the people’s Southeast
Asian culture. It institutes Lakan as the head of state; establishes
a Lupong Pambansa as the council of state (i.e. council of elders); and
provides inclusive linguistic bases for the wikang pambansa (i.e.
national language).[vii]
The
People’s Draft defends the national sovereignty. It restores “historic
or legal title” as bases of the national territory (i.e. Philippine
archipelago, Kalayaan islands, Sabah, exclusive economic zone). By recognizing
the Sulu Sultanate, it strengthens the kingdom’s claims to rentals for the
lease of Sabah.
The
People’s Draft protects the national security. There will be NO
“Balkanization” (or breakup of the State) because the new Constitution
prohibits secession and the establishment of military & police forces by
any substate. ONLY “internal security forces” (to protect persons &
properties) will be allowed.
[i] Facebook:
#PeoplesDraft. Twitter: @PeoplesDraft.
[ii] TanDem is an NGO advocating “system
change” and “electoral reform.”
[iii] Publicus is a lobby firm.
[iv] 3% of the total number of
registered voters, and 1% of the voters in every district.
[v] All departments and attached agencies,
except DND, DILG, DFA, DOJ, DOF, DBM, NEDA and BSP.
[vi] Luzon,
Visayas, Mindanao, Metro Manila & Bangsamoro regions.
[vii]
National language based on Tagalog, and enriched by Cebuano, Ilocano,
Hiligaynon, Waray-Waray, Bikol, Kapangpangan, Pangasinan, Maranao, Tausug,
Maguindanao and Kinaray-a, among others.
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