The House Makabayan Bloc insisted Thursday that a Charter change is not the solution the country needed to address the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Hindi pwedeng i-Cha-cha ang pandemya. Constitutional reform will not provide immediate relief to the already struggling Filipinos,” said Gabriela Women’s Party Representative Arlene Brosas in a virtual press conference.
According to the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments chair Alfredo Garbin, the charter change hearings would only focus to amend the “restrictive” economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution to make it more open to foreign investors.
“This is one way of addressing the effects of the pandemic by opening up the entry of foreign direct investment, foreign capital dahil bagsak na bagsak ang ating ekonomiya and we are lagging behind pagdating sa mga FDIs [foreign direct investments] and inflows of foreign capital,” Garbin said.
However, Brosas argued that this amendment would only make the Philippine economy vulnerable to external shocks amid the pandemic.
“What we need is an alternative path focused on genuine agrarian reform and national industrialization,” she said.
Charter change not the solution to COVID-19 economic pandemic
Meanwhile, ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro said there are already several measures that would make the economy flexible to foreigners.
“Kahit na sinasabi na baguhin yung mga pang-economic na provision dito, ang dami nang batas na ipinasa para ibuyangyang yung ating ekonomiya, yung ating environment sa foreign control at iba pang monopolyo,” she said.
“Dahil malapit na ang eleksyon, 18 months na lang, ito ba ay para sa pansariling interes ng sinumang gustong magbukas ng Charter change?” she added.
Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Zarate shared the sentiments as Castro, saying they most likely end up introducing amendments in political provision in the Constitution during the Charter change hearings.
“Ginagawa lamang dahilan itong pagbabago raw sa economic provisions pero ang nasa likod din nito ay ang pagtutulak ng mga political na pagbabago kagaya ng term extension and lifting of term limits ng mga pulitiko,” he said.
“Kaya tuluy-tuloy nating nilalabanan, ang pagbabago sa ating Saligang Batas dahil sa mga makikitid na interes na nasa likod at hindi ito para sa interes at kagalingan ng mga mamamayan,” he added.