By FLORO L. MERCENE
SPEAKER Joe de Venecia has called for a Constitutional convention to amend or revise the Constitution to pave the way for a parliamentary government.
He is dropping Con- ass hated by the church and the people.
***
JdV challenged the Senate to go along with Con-con, failing which the House is all set to pursue Con-ass come hell or high water.
The Speaker detonated a bombshell that had the effect of calming the huge protests being readied by the church and militant organizations and opposition from several sectors.
***
Too late though. Because of the planned demos and protest rallies, the ASEAN Summit has been canceled, a victim of natural and manmade calamities.
***
JdV’s idea is to have delegates to the Con-con elected in May to coincide with the mid-term national and local elections.
The idea is palatable, especially to Comelec Chairman Ben Abalos who need not worry where to get funding for the Con-con election.
***
Dean Tony Tupaz of the PUP College of Law gave the expert opinion that Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of its members, voting separately, can call a Con-con.
The moment a Con-con is called, this body can proposed amendments to the Constitution.
Any amendment or revisions of the Constitution may be proposed by Congress upon the vote of three-fourth of all its members, voting separately.
***
Dean Tupaz, a member of the 1973 Con-con, adds that when an amendment or revision is done by a Con-con (not by Congress), a simple majority of the convention can approve the proposed changes.
Tony is somewhat pessimistic about the proposed Con-Con of JdV. It will take three years at least for the new body to come up with a new Constitution.
***
My friend Doy S. Sanchez, former board member of Cavite, is running for vice mayor in Imus. Now a radio commentator and special assistant to the National Security Adviser, Doy is a very popular figure in Cavite.
A Tausog from Tawi-Tawi, Shariff Ibrahim H. Albani, is running for Congress as a party-list candidate under the flag of the Angat Bayan Tungo sa Kaunlaran (Alaka).
***
From Chief Justice Reynato Puno: I don’t know of any person who has figured me out.
I have, Your Honor. You were going to strike down Con Ass.
***
His words to be cast on granite: I will not condition my vote on the basis of who appointed me.
***
Customs Commissioner Nap Morales is the target of a demolition and black propaganda campaign in the media being orchestrated by an ambitious official who is hankering for the top customs post.
Let’s hope the guy does not succeed. Morales is one of the best appointees of the President. Since taking over the customs post in 2005, Nap Morales has gone hammer and tong against smuggling syndicates and crooked officials and employees of the bureau, a stance that has not made him popular.
Upon his taking over the bureau, it surpassed its target collection by 22.8 percent. As of October, the BoC has collected almost R165 billion, surpassing last year’s collection by over 38 percent and this year’s collection by R6.42 billion.
***
Vibal Publishing Company has become the victim of a bitter demolition job after cornering a multi-million textbook project funded by the World Bank.
After going through a rigid process set by the World Bank and supervised by the Departments of Education, Finance, and Budget and Management, the Vibal Group was awarded a R500 million contract to print and supply textbooks to public elementary and high schools.
One of the losing bidders went full blast with a media campaign aimed at stopping the contract and with an attempt at destroying the credibility of Vibal Publishing.
Here’s the catch: The losing bidder does not even own a printing press. Worse, its business was registered as a dealer of casino cards. Small wonder, the World Bank junked the complaint.
|
