Political Reform

Rising distrust and contempt for institutions noted

30 January 2008

THE rising incidence of violence in courtrooms is alarming because it shows the people’s contempt and distrust in the judicial system, according to lawyer Ramel Muria, general secretary of the Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas.

Muria said the shooting incident at the Manila city hall Tuesday that led to the killing of a former town mayor is disturbing since it came two months after another similar incident happened in Las Pinas. He recalled that a lawyer and her client were shot dead in November inside a Las Pinas court. He said that there have been similar cases in Quezon City and Makati.

“I really hope that this will not become a trend because it mirrors the people’s view of the justice system,” Muria said. He said some litigants have come to think they cannot swift justice or they can commit these brazen crimes inside the supposedly hollowed courts.
He stressed the need for courts to tighten security and for the police to strictly implement its campaign against loose firearms.

Muria noted that there has been rising incidence of political violence in general and that one even occurred at the Batasan Pambansa last year where a Muslim congressman was killed.

These incidents show the erosion of people’s respect for institutions and the rule of law and, if left unchecked, may lead to the dominance of chaos and violence, Muria said as he reiterated PDSP’s call for political forces, concerned sectors and authorities to unite in putting an end to the emerging trend.

25 March 2008

THE Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas welcomes with relief former Supreme Court Justice Jose Melo’s assumption of his post as Chairman of the Commission on Elections, coming at a time when the poll body is facing great challenges.

Lawyer Ramel Muria, PDSP general secretary, said Melo’s sterling record at the Supreme Court and his sense of delicadeza in refusing to take over his new post without the approval of the Commission on Appointments will help him steer the Comelec away from more irregularities and controversies. Muria said Melo may just be the man who will help the poll body regain the people’s trust and confidence in the electoral system.

Melo’s ad interim appointment was resubmitted by the President to the CA. The former Justice, who refused to assume his post without approval from the appointments body, took his oath of office Tuesday.

Muria said Melo needs to buckle down to work at once since the poll body has to prepare for the Mindanalo elections in August. He will also have to deal with the slaying of Wynne Asdala, the head of the Comelec’s legal division who was gunned down Monday.

“Big problems await the new Comelec chair but with his record, the people need not fear that Melo’s leadership will be marred with anomalies. He seems to be a prudent man, and we are hopeful that with him at the helm, the poll body can redeem itself,” Muria said, alluding to the number of irregularities that hounded Comelec leaders such as rigged bidding and electoral fraud.

The PDSP official also condemned the killing of Asdala and urged police and Comelec officials to tighten security to prevent any more attacks. “The threat on the lives of Comelec men seems to be ever present. If politics is the motive, the crime is doubly condemnable and authorities should identify the culprits so that they will get their just punishment,” Muria said.

Con-con is best—PDSP

28 October 2006

SINCE the Supreme Court has killed people’s initiative, Charter change proponents should shift to Constitutional convention, which is the best way to introduce changes to the Constitution because it is not as divisive as people’s initiative.

While stressing that Charter change is not the main need of Philippine society at this time, Jesuit priest Fr. Romeo Intengan said Con-con, although costly, is the best option since it is the most acceptable means to amend the Charter.

He said Con-con is not as divisive as people’s initiative or Constitutional assembly, which has left the Senate and the House of Representatives at odds.

“Charter change is ethically acceptable only if it will promote the aim of a prosperous, just and caring society. The manner of bringing about Cha-cha should be as unifying and non-divisive as possible,” Intengan, head of the education commission of the Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas, said.

He noted, however, that “carrying out reforms in governance, economic, political and cultural sectors that would pave the way for a non-violent social revolution toward a prosperous society that cares equally for all its members” is more urgent than Charter change.

Lawyer Jose “Nonong” Ricafrente, PDSP spokesperson, agreed that Charter change proponents should focus on Con-con since it is the only option left.

“The efficacy of a constituent assembly is as ticklish as the people’s initiative and will surely land in the Supreme Court. It is a wonder then why the less controversial constitutional convention has not been set in place to date.

Notwithstanding the enormous expenses and time necessary for the exercise, it is the only way by which genuine political and economic reforms may be embodied in a new Constitution,” Ricafrente said.

He said converting Congress into an interim parliament is suspect because “this could be an easy way of circumventing the three-term limit of many incumbent legislators.”

“While there can be no debate that the term of office of the incumbent President and Vice-President should be respected, the proscription on the term limit of congressmen should likewise be observed. It is scandalous that congressmen who can no longer run for reelection in the May 14, 2007 polls may go around the prohibition by making themselves automatically interim parliament members and run as representatives again for parliament, the successor-in-interest of Congress,” Ricafrente said.
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Weed out anti-democratic parties, COMELEC urged

02 October 2006

THE Commission on Elections should start weeding out political parties and party-list groups supportive of anti-democratic forces whose main objectives are to topple the administration and to seize state power for themselves.

Jesuit priest Father Romeo Intengan urged the Comelec to strictly screen those groups recognized or wanting to be recognized as party-list groups so as not to add more organizations being used as fronts by communist or by ultra-rightist rebels.

The poll body should make sure that groups supporting communist insurgents are not given any legal personality because they would only attempt to strengthen whatever hold existing extreme left party-list groups have acquired in and outside Congress. The priest said representatives of anti-democratic groups should not be allowed to participate in next year’s elections, since it is a blatant error to allow anti-democrats to abuse democratic processes in order to destroy democracy.

Aside from groups who have been backing communist rebels, the Comelec should also watch out for organizations which support ultra-rightist groups. Intengan explained that in a democracy, and especially at this time in the Philippines, the primary struggle is not between leftist and rightist groups but between democratic and anti-democratic forces. He pointed out that groups belonging to the extreme left and extreme right are threats to democracy and to the state.

Intengan maintained that a number of party-list groups who gained representation in Congress have not severed their ties with the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People’s Army. While these groups claim to be above-ground, they continue to support, covertly or overtly, rebel groups who continue to try to seize state power through violent means. These groups include Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Anakpawis, Anak ng Bayan, Migrante and Suara Bangsa Moro.

Intengan, head of the education commission of the Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas (PDSP), noted that anti-democratic forces are not limited to communist insurgents but also include ultra-rightist groups, like a small minority faction of the Magdalo, whose members recently have been linked to a plot to topple the Arroyo administration.

These groups, particularly the CPP-NPA, are driven by ideology and will not stop their struggle for state power until they are utterly defeated, and therefore democratic forces should not be complacent but rather should be vigilant about these groups, he stressed.

For this reason, the Comelec should act like a filter and evaluator of party-list applicants and already recognized party-list groups, so that these rebel groups will not have any “fronts,” much less additional “fronts” in Congress, Intengan said.
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Gonzales urges COMELEC to reveal party-list nominees

14 April 2007

NATIONAL Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales yesterday expressed support to the growing clamor for the Commission on Elections to reveal the nominees of party-list groups.

“It would be best if the Comelec identified these nominees because while it is true that the party-lists are the candidates, their nominees will be the ones sitting in Congress if they win. The people deserve to know who these nominees are,” Gonzales, chair of the Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas, said.

“The nominees, through their groups, are actually the ones seeking public office. The electorate should know who they’re voting for when they choose a certain sectoral group,” Gonzales added.
Gonzales said the Comelec, by heeding calls for it to reveal the nominees of party-lists, would not only be enlightening voters, it would also be dispelling suspicions that it is trying to shield some personalities behind some party-lists.

He noted that the poll body would be doing voters a big favor if it published the names of party-list nominees because the electorate would be able to know if the nominees are indeed qualified and capable to fight for the rights of the sectors they represent.

The Comelec is mandated to inform the public about party-list voting. Republic Act 7941 or the Party-list Law does not expressly prohibit the Comelec from revealing the nominees of party-list groups.
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PDSP welcomes SC decision on party-list nominees disclosure

04 May 2007

THE Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas lauded the Supreme Court for upholding the people’s right to information by ordering the Commission on Elections to disclose the names of party-list nominees.
With the High Tribunal’s decision, voters will be more informed when they cast their votes for party-list on May 14, Jesuit priest Romeo Intengan, PDSP co-founder, said.

He said the Comelec should have bared the nominees of party-list groups at the start of the campaign period so that the electorate would have had the time to determine if these nominees are qualified to represent their sectors. While it came days before the election, Intengan described the Supreme Court decision a “victory for voters.”

The PDSP earlier joined calls for the poll body to disclose the identities of party-list nominees. PDSP chair and National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales said the people have the right to know the people who will represent party-list organizations because while voters will be choosing the sector or group, these nominees will be the ones sitting in Congress if their groups win.

At the same time, Intengan expressed support for Aksyon Sambayanan, a multi-sectoral party-list group.
The priest said AKSA truly represents farmers, fisherfolk, industrial workers, informal workers small businessmen and professionals. The group is a strong advocate of interfaith solidarity and cooperation, especially between Christians and Muslims.

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Time to revamp Comelec—Intengan

02 October 2007

THE resignation of Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos, Jr. should lead to a massive revamp of the poll body to regain its credibility.

Jesuit priest and Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas co-founder Fr. Romeo Intengan said there is an urgent need to appoint persons with integrity to the Comelec to restore people’s trust in the poll body. He noted that the people no longer look at the poll body as a credible institution because of the many scandals and controversies linked to the commission and its officials such as the P1.3 billion Mega Pacific deal, the Hello, Garci scandal, allegations of cheating in the May elections and recently, Abalos’ alleged brokering of the ZTE broadband deal and his attempt to bribe a government official and a businessman.

“So many credible reports of corruption in the Comelec make a revamp urgent. Many of the citizenry nowadays regard the commission as an auction firm – victory goes to the highest bidder. With Abalos’ resignation, now is the perfect time for the President to name someone with unquestioned integrity and competence to head the poll body, which plays such a huge role in the protection of democracy,” Intengan said.

The PDSP leader also called on the President to allow various sectors to participate in the selection of the next Comelec chairperson. “The people have never been consulted when it comes to the appointment of Comelec officials, perhaps this is a good time to start,” the priest said.

He noted that a change in leadership can also be the start for the Comelec to rectify mistakes it committed in the past, such as accrediting “bogus” party-list groups.

“Time and again, the Comelec has made the mistake of accrediting party list groups that should not qualify because they do not represent marginalized sectors, or because they are directed or are strongly influenced by groups that are waging armed rebellion against the government,” Intengan said.