The Economics of Con-Ass

The passage of House Resolution 1109 gave the 14th Congress of the Philippines the authority to convene a constituent assembly and solely by itself amend our constitution.

Claims of corruption have been hurled against this same Congress. On top of the list was the controversy that lawmakers were bribed by Gloria Arroyo to block series of impeachment bids against her. There were probes into the claim that more than P120 million was given to about 190 legislators. It cannot be disputed that majority in Congress can, in all probability, be bought. This makes it easier for powerful and wealthy stakeholders to push forward their interests to this lawmaking body.

It had been very difficult for cause-oriented members of the 14th Congress to impeach Gloria Arroyo because she knew exactly what to do -- make sure the pockets of the untrustworthy members were full. With the exemption of a number of party list representatives, there will always be a monetary equivalent that can induce lawmakers to act, including making major amendments in the constitution according to the desires of the highest bidder.

If certain sectors, both domestic and international, are determined to remove the protectionist provisions from our constitution especially under Article XII on National Economy and Patrimony, it is most painless and almost effortless to negotiate with a small group of deceitful legislators than members of a multi-sectoral and inter-regional constitutional convention. If verbal negotiations fail, money will start to talk. With the overall character of our present Congress, advocates of free trade and globalization will find it very easy to advance major changes in our constitution like opening our natural resources to 100% foreign ownership and control.

Multinationals will be ready to pay Congress millions of pesos so long as they are assured they can exploit our resources with less restrictions. They will certainly recover their lobbying costs so long as our constitution supports their profit-maximizing objectives. But there is no such thing as free lunch. The money that goes into the pockets of our corrupt lawmakers and the revenues that global interests will amass from their economic activities in our country will have to be shouldered by someone else. And this is the ordinary Juan and Juana dela Cruz who will continue to wallow in endless poverty. The Filipino poor will be hardest hit by pollution, flooding, landslides, toxic environment, denuded forests, cheap labor and other evils of unregulated economic pursuits.