By A petition is being circulated for charter change or “cha-cha” in several barangays in the country by barangay officials and members of various organizations in exchange for money.
Several reports have surfaced in recent days that there are petitions for the amendment of the constitution in several barangays in the country. According to the reports, money is being paid allegedly to those who sign said petition ranging from P100 to P1,000 for each signature. Many of the residents worry that they might have signed it, without the details being explained to them fully.
The petition contains the amendment of the 1987 constitution through a people’s initiative. Said method may be possible upon a petition of at least twelve percent (12%) of the total number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three percent (3%) of the registered voters therein.
In 2006, the COMELEC and the Supreme Court rejected a similar campaign. According to the Court, some of the proposed amendments were not directly proposed by the signatories themselves and many of them haven’t read the entire petition itself and didn’t know what they have signed up for.
It can also be noted that in March 2023, congress passed a resolution for a constitutional convention, which was intended to change the constitution, especially in terms of ‘term extension’ that would extend the term of politicians.
For BAYAN MUNA Partylist Chairman Neri Colmenares, some of the suggested amendments, aside from the proposed term extension, are also dangerous such as the 100% foreign ownership of the country’s land and other basic social services like electricity, education, water, hospitals, and many more.
As for the Kabataan Partylist, the petition being pushed under the guise of a democratic process only serves the interests of the dynasties in Congress. Currently, the petition has reached several regions and no one owned up to it. Kabataan Partylist, progressive groups, and the church are calling on the people to be vigilant on this matter and be mindful of the documents before signing them./PT
