Aside from the provision about the economy, Senator Robin Padilla wants to be involved in the proposed amendment to the Constitution to change or eliminate the Party-list system, which is said to have no “edge” and “substance.”
In an interview with Super Radyo dzBB, Padilla, chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes, said that the “cycle of people voting for candidates based on popularity and wealth” should disappear in the party-list system.
“Kung mapupunta tayo sa con-con [Constitutional Convention], ‘yan dapat una nating gibain. Dahil ang party-list system ay… my goodness gracious, ‘di ko na makita. Mula magdesisyon ang ating Korte Suprema na payagan na pati mga mayayaman, nawala na po ng anghang at sustansiya. Eh dapat po ‘yan eh mga sektor na ‘di naririnig,” explained Padilla.
“Ang kinatawan [sa sistemang ito], naging katawa-tawa,” said the actor-turned-politician.
According to the inexperienced senator, the party system should be strengthened so that people vote based on the group’s advocacy, not because of the famous or rich.
Sen. Robin Padilla wants to remove party-list system
“Tigilan na po natin ang kaboboto dahil sikat at dahil ito may pera. Alam niyo kung nabago natin ang Constitution at mapalakas natin ang partido, ang iboboto niyo na po ang adhikain ng partido, ‘di na ‘yung sikat,” said Padilla.
According to Padilla, the promised investments obtained by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in various countries will not be fulfilled if the economic provisions in the Philippine Constitution are not amended.
Meanwhile, the Partylist Coalition Foundation Inc (PCFI) insisted to the House of Representatives, which is clearly stated in the law, including the Supreme Court’s ruling in Palaum vs. Comelec case: “The party-list system is in place to lend a voice to the already marginalized groups, regardless of financial capacity of party-list group nominees.”
Under the law, a party-list group is elected by each voter. Depending on the number of votes it gets, the number of “seats” a party-list group can get ranges from one to three.
In May 2022 elections, ACT-CIS (Anti-Crime and Terrorism Community Involvement and Support) got the most votes reaching over two million votes and got three seats in the House.
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