The party’s over?

The days of the party list system are fast drawing to a close. That is if President Duterte will have his way.

To do this, Senate President Tito Sotto said Mr. Duterte wants the Senate and the House of Representatives to form a constituent assembly, one of whose underlying objectives is to scotch the party list system which has allegedly been infiltrated by groups seeking to topple the lawful government.

This is ultimately the end-goal of Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) No. 2 filed by staunch Duterte allies Senators Francis Tolentino and Ronald de la Rosa urging the Senate and House of Representatives to convene into a constituent assembly purportedly to introduce limited amendments to the 1987 Constitution.

Sotto claimed that the Palace had set its sights on “amending” the provision in the Constitution on sectoral representation through the party list system.
This topic was supposedly front-and-center during a meeting that transpired between Sotto, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and the chief executive in early December 2020.

“I want this problem with the CPP-NPA solved. The best way is that we remove the party list system. You may take this advantage to amend the economic provisions,” Sotto quoted the President as saying.
Speaking with Senate media, Sotto reportedly said Mr. Duterte singled out leftist groups aligned under the Makabayan party list group in the House of Representatives

However, Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City, chairman of the committee on constitutional amendments, assured that there would be no changes whatsoever on the existing political structure.

Photo by Angie de Silva/Rappler