Bishops renew opposition to Charter change
Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said there’s time for Charter change and it should not be done with haste.
He said a thorough review of the measure, which according to its proponents at the House of Representatives, only seeks to revise the economic provisions of the constitution.
But critics are convinced that the intent of such a move late in the Arroyo Administration is simply to extend the chief executive’s term limit.
“No (to Charter change). It should be studied carefully first. I don’t even know the real motive of that,” Cardinal Vidal said.
Balanga Bishop Socrates Villegas echoed Cardinal Vidal’s stand that the government should thoroughly consult the people on the Charter change issue.
“It’s very important that people should be educated first. The people should be informed about the issues at stake because it is the peoples’ constitution,” he said.
After a massive information campaign about revising the Charter, he said, it is then the time for the people to decide on what process to take.
“But along the way it should be always be transparent, should be accompanied by honesty and it should be done with the people with least interest,” the bishop said.
The church leaders also called on the lawmakers to focus instead on the more pressing problems like solving poverty and the kidnapping incidents in Mindanao.
Speaker Prospero Nograles yesterday said he had received a draft resolution with 175 signatures calling for the convening of a constituent assembly to amend the Constitution.
The lawmaker said he intended to file the measure when Congress reconvenes April 13 after a monthlong Lenten break. (Roy Lagarde)
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