Following a confusion and controversy on the persons tasked to promote federalism, an intra-agency body will be setting out to look for spokespersons to be tasked with cascading information to make proposed federal government acceptable to the people.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar yesterday revealed an intra-agency body to be composed of representatives from the PCOO, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Office of the Executive Secretary, several delegates to the Consultative Committee (ConCom) and others will choose the spokespersons for the government’s “Pederalismo Campaign.”

This is in preparation for the termination of the contracts of the ConCom delegates this month, Andanar said.

He added the DILG will provide the PCOO with P10 million to fund the “Pederalismo Campaign” which the government agencies plan to explain as clearly and effectively closer to the people in the different regions in the country.

“The amount would not suffice. But we will ask the help of all stakeholders in communications, including the media, to help us in the ‘Pederalismo Campaign’ of government,” Andanar said.

The DILG and the PCOO, according to Andanar, are set to sign an agreement before the formal start of the “Pederalismo Campaign.”

Also to figure in the campaign are offices of the Commission on Higher Education and the Philippine News Agency.

“We are using a network of government agencies to disseminate information about the federal form of government,” Andanar said. “Maybe all government agencies can pitch in, in whatever way, to help President Duterte’s vow come true. We’ll go to the nook and cranny of the country’s ends to help ease the campaign.”

The campaign, according to Andanar, will be multi-dialect to make the people understand the details about federalism better.

An online video of PCOO assistant secretary Mocha Uson and another man caused both backlash and support to the federalism push the other day, but ConCom spokesman Ding Generoso said the negative reviews on Uson’s video blog somehow stirred talks about the proposed federal government.

“Something good may come out of this. Like, for instance, before all these things happened, only three of 10 Filipinos, according to surveys, say they have heard of the word federalism,” Generoso said. “But now somehow, the word ‘pederalismo’ almost became a household word because of this incident.”

Generoso also said Uson’s comparison of federalism to a rainbow is “correct” because it is a symbolism of unity amid diversity.

“It was certainly not the way to present federalism,” Generoso said on Monday.

Meanwhile, Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said the House will wait for the Senate cue before they discuss the substance of the amendments of the 1987 Constitution.

She also batted for a separate voting scheme when the Constituent Assembly is convened.