“CHARTER change can be done today—very quickly and without much mess. That is, if there is sincerity and political will among our present political leaders to pursue the societal changes that the country needs.” This was the statement of National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales yesterday.
Gonzales pointed out that President Aquino created a constitutional commission less than three months upon assuming revolutionary powers and changed the country’s Constitution in about a year.
“Since we are not under a revolutionary government today, what we can do is have one amendment to the Constitution that will add constitutional commission as another mode of Charter change. The alternative is to change the nomenclature of the constitutional convention mode to reduce its composition to a more manageable size,” he adds.
Gonzalez stressed that the key to charter change today is the heads of the three branches of government coming together to have a sincere dialogue and agree among themselves to finally pursue the societal change long needed by the country. “We are talking here of just four people to begin with.
Gonzales stressed that the new constitutional commission, to be credible and acceptable, should represent a broad spectrum of public opinion. (NSA/PIA)
