Amending the 1987 Constitutions is NECESSARY for Economic Restoration

Yesterday, I decided to write against the Facebook page, Silent No More PH, as well as other similar pages. I just found another page called iMPACT Leadership which I wonder, what impact do they plan anyway? I even wonder if the Liberal Party of the Philippines could've seen this that if we were in a parliamentary system--they would be able to act as the direct Opposition against the Government led by Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. We would be having weekly debates between Prime Minister Marcos Jr. and Opposition Leader Maria Leonor Gerona-Robredo. Mrs. Robredo would have her own cabinet which she will have Shadow Ministers to help hold the Marcos Jr.-led Government accountable.

I decided to select from pictures from iMPACT Leadership. I would give some of my own common sense feedback as to why I beg to disagree...

Thoughts on what Representative Gabriel Hidalgo Bordado Jr. said about his vote

Is it me or do the boomers have the tendency to be stuck on the status quo? If so, why did they not choose to keep the 1973 Constitution of the Philippines and a 1987 Constitution of the Philippines had to be made? I could agree that amending the constitution is a huge responsibility. I can't deny that much of what the late Benigno Simeon A. Aquino Jr. spoke in his Los Angeles speech was true. The whole constitutional convention during Aquino Jr.'s time was a shame.

As a lawmaker, has Bordado kept in mind that the economic polices are part of the constitution? If he's so serious about restoring the economy of the Philippines then here's what. He needs to see the defect namely Article XII of the 1987 Constitution. I really wonder if Bordado Jr., who I heard took non-degree short courses at the National University of Singapore (NUS) ever realized the bigger mistakes. If he doesn't see it as a problem then I wonder what kind of lawmaker he is?

The problem with the economic matters would be summarized as follows:

Section 10. The Congress shall, upon recommendation of the economic and planning agency, when the national interest dictates, reserve to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens, or such higher percentage as Congress may prescribe, certain areas of investments. The Congress shall enact measures that will encourage the formation and operation of enterprises whose capital is wholly owned by Filipinos.
In the grant of rights, privileges, and concessions covering the national economy and patrimony, the State shall give preference to qualified Filipinos.
The State shall regulate and exercise authority over foreign investments within its national jurisdiction and in accordance with its national goals and priorities.
Section 11. No franchise, certificate, or any other form of authorization for the operation of a public utility shall be granted except to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations organized under the laws of the Philippines, at least sixty per centum of whose capital is owned by such citizens; nor shall such franchise, certificate, or authorization be exclusive in character or for a longer period than fifty years. Neither shall any such franchise or right be granted except under the condition that it shall be subject to amendment, alteration, or repeal by the Congress when the common good so requires. The State shall encourage equity participation in public utilities by the general public. The participation of foreign investors in the governing body of any public utility enterprise shall be limited to their proportionate share in its capital, and all the executive and managing officers of such corporation or association must be citizens of the Philippines.
Section 12. The State shall promote the preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials and locally produced goods, and adopt measures that help make them competitive.

If he's really serious about the economy, why not raise it up in the constitutional convention that the amendments should focus on removing unnecessary restrictions. Once again, 100% share ownership is different from land ownership. It means that FDIs aren't required to find a Filipino partner with whom they can only own up to 40% in certain fields. Right now, the Public Services Act of 2022 has allowed Starlink to establish a base in the Philippines. I'd say that the constitutional convention should work in getting rid of all excessive restrictions.

Now, we can talk about Edcel C. Lagman Sr,

I would really say that this is an unexpected statement from a political science graduate who is also a law student. Even Mrs. Robredo was open to amendments. I would like to tell him my stand on the matter that I don't think charter change (or constitutional reform) is a panacea. No solution is a panacea. There's no such thing as a cure-all drug. You take Biogestic for headaches and fever. You take Neozep for runny nose. You take cough medicine for cough medicine. You have different types of surgery performed for different problems. My cataract was removed via laser surgery. My right eye was fixed via SMILE corneal surgery. I could agree with Lagman Sr. that it's not a magic wand.

However, what Lagman isn't seeing that the constitution can be both a problem and a solution. Why do you think that the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines has Article XVII which also writes the following?

Section 2. Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition of at least twelve per centum of the total number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three per centum of the registered voters therein. No amendment under this section shall be authorized within five years following the ratification of this Constitution nor oftener than once every five years thereafter.

The problem with fully implementing Article XII of the 1987 Constitution is all about excessive restrictions. Why do you think the late Fidel V. Ramos, Joseph Marcelo Ejercito aka Joseph Estrada, Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the late Benigno Simeon C. Aquino Jr., and Rodrigo Roa Duterte, all former Philippine presidents, had amended the Negative List during their terms? Duterte was also involved in signing the Public Services Act of 2022. Economist Andrew James Masigan even boldly wrote this in the Philippine Star last 2022:

Unfortunately, the Philippines is rated the most restrictive in the whole of ASEAN as far as accepting foreign capital is concerned. No surprise, our FDI to GDP ratio is the second lowest among the region’s ten economies. From our peak intake of $10.256 billion in 2017, FDIs declined to $9.9 billion in 2018, $8.7 billion in 2019 and $6.4 billion in 2020. Our FDI intake is only half of that of Vietnam and a third of Indonesia’s.
The main impediments to the flow of FDIs in the country are the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution. The Constitution was written to protect industries for Filipinos, but it backfired. It has instead starved us of capital, jobs, export revenues and taxes. It created oligopolies made up of conglomerates owned by just a handful of families. These conglomerates control every aspect of the economy – from infrastructure to public utilities to retail. The few families that own these conglomerates earn scandalous profits even though they are inefficient.
Simply put, the 1987 Constitution is the reason why we have become the economic laggard in the region and why our income inequality is the worst among ASEAN’s major economies.

Has Lagman Sr. ever considered the big problem of Article XII? What's even funnier is that he says an ICC probe on Duterte's alleged crimes can increase FDI. Whether you are pro-Duterte or anti-Duterte, I guess I can agree with you that will not change anything unless Article XII of the 1987 Constitution were massively revised. The real problem is all about excessive restrictions. I wonder if Lagman even realizes that more investors are going to Communist Vietnam where censorship is far stricter than the Philippines? Does he think Vietnam has excessive restrictions in terms of ownership?

Closing words

I guess being highly educated is no guarantee, right? Back then, I wanted to study at the Ateneo De Manila University (ADMU) in order to silence my critics. I even took an MBA degree to attain some prestige. Eventually, I just felt that being educated is not the same as being learned. If these people feel that constitutional amendments are necessary, I wonder what did they ever do with their education?

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