Samar solon says referendum for Cha-cha by July possible

By ELI C. DALUMPINES, (PIA-Samar)
June 27, 2006

CATBALOGAN, Samar  – Samar’s 2nd district congressman Catalino V. Figueroa, speaking before officials of the Department of Education (DepEd), Samar Division on June 21, said that the shift from Presidential System to Parliamentary might take place by July.

Congressman Figueroa expressed confidence that the Supreme Court will soon be able to resolve the petition filed by some opposition lawyers against the plan to amend the constitution by way of a people’s initiative citing the Court’s previous ruling that it lacks enabling mechanism.

According to the congressman, once the issue is settled, the Commission on Election (COMELEC) can immediately proceed with the referendum to submit the proposed amendment to the people.

Figueroa stressed that there is really a need to amend the charter, especially those economic provisions which are defective and those that appear to be anti-development.

He clarified, however, that those are to be dealt with later since the subject for change under this proposed amendment will be the shift of governmental structure from Presidential-Bicameral to Parliamentary-Unicameral.

He informed the DepEd officials that he was with the group who strongly supported the proposal to increase the DepEd’s 2006 budget by P1billion but this came to nothing following the failure of the Senate to approve the budget.

“That’s how a bicameral congress works,” Figueroa said as he urged the people to campaign for the shift to unicameralism.

He maintained that there are certain measures that need to be treated with urgency in which he find the bicameral structure slow and counter-productive.