The consultative committee created by no less than President Rodrigo Duterte proposing changes to the 1987 Constitution said it would submit a draft federal Charter to the chief executive on July 9, or barely two weeks before Duterte delivers his 2018 State of the Nation Address on July 23.
According to Con-Com spokesman Ding Generoso, their panel will hold regional presentations and consultations in at least five cities, namely Dumaguete, Butuan, Legazpi, Baguio, and Tacloban, before turning in the proposed new Constitution to Duterte.
The Con-Com hopes to vote on the entire draft Constitution in an en banc session next week before the end of Ramadan.
But it has yet to finalize the articles on federated regions, transitory provisions, and further amendments, Generoso explained.
He added that the completed articles are now undergoing refinement on style and consistency.
“We are not rushing into this, mahaba pa ’yung proseso na dadaanan,” he said.
As this developed, Senator Grace Poe is pushing for amendments to the 81-year-old Public Services Act to allow foreign entities to come in and invest.
Poe said easing up restrictions on foreign investments in some sectors will attract more investors and generate much needed jobs for Filipinos.
She added that use of this, Po said it is high time to pass the proposed amendments to the old law that would result in increased competition, better quality services and creation of jobs.
She expressed confidence that Malacanang will also push the Public Services Act similar to what it did to TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion) and the BBL (Bangsamoro Basic Law).
Poe, the chairperson of the Senate committee on public services, said the bill would open up the economy “the right way.”
“Let us open up our economy to foreign investors,” said Poe, as she urged people not to be scared with the entry of foreigners in the country because “I will not consent to their buying of land in our country,” she said.
“Pero ang negosyo na itatayo nila, hindi naman nila madadala ang gusali nila, kung sila ay magbibigay ng trabaho, kung mag-iinvest sila ng pera dito dahil ang ownership restriction ay tatanggalin sa kanila,” Poe said.
The bill proposes to remove foreign ownership restrictions on public services such as transportation and telecommunications. However, the constitutional restriction would remain on public utilities, namely, transmission of electricity, distribution of electricity, and waterworks and sewerage systems.
Poe said the bill would include a clause that would guarantee the availability of jobs for Filipinos.
In a report last week, the Philippine Statistics Authority said that while the jobless rate slightly declined to 5.5 percent in April, underemployment rose to 17 percent.
The underemployed is defined by the PSA as “employed persons who express the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job, or to have an additional job, or to have a new job with longer working hours.”
The senator said investments are much needed in the transportation sector, such as rails and airports. She cited the completion of Terminal 2 (T2) of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) in Lapu-Lapu City, which she described as Cebu’s “masterpiece.”
Set to open this month, the world-class terminal is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project with the joint venture of Megawide Consortium and India’s GMR Infrastructure with a cost of P17.52 billion.
The new terminal building will serve domestic and international operations and has a capacity of up to 12.5 million passengers yearly.
Poe visited the terminal while it was undergoing construction in March.
“It warms the heart. Now you can see the tangible result, you can now see the structure. Mayroong produktong mapapakinabangan ng ating mga kababayan,” Poe said.
She said the Terminal 2 of MCIA is an example of how effective PPP projects can work. But she added that safeguards must be in place to ensure that the private operators will not overcharge the public.
“I’m more agreeable na magkaroon ng PPP or build-operate-transfer, kaysa naman iyong ODA (Official Development Assistance)…hindi na tayo uutang, sila ang maglalabas ng pera, sila ang magpapatakbo,” she said.
