House gives word that PI won't scrap upper chamber

Leaders of the House of Representatives gave their words to their counterparts in the Senate amid fears that the push for people's initiative to revamp the 1987 Constitution would scrap the upper chamber.

"With regard to the fears and allegations that the House would want to abolish the Senate, we would just like to let everybody know that as far as our party is concerned, there is no way we will be voting in any form to remove our five senators. And if we are not going to remove our five senators, then the other 19 senators can be assured," said Rizal Rep. Jack Duavit, head of the Nationalist People's Coalition, in an interview during the House party leaders' caucus.

Senators Loren Legarda, Francis Escudero, Lito Lapid, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Joseph Victor Ejercito are all stalwarts of the NPC.

Deputy Speaker Kristine Singson-Meehan echoed Duavit's affirmation, saying attempts to abolish the Senate will not be included when constitution reforms push through.

In the same vein, Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr. Gonzales, a member of Romualdez-led Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats, reaffirmed the House's robust stance for Cha-cha that would not go beyond economic provisions and will not be coupled with another motive, particularly political amendments.

"We are not saying that we will abolish the Senate. They are just imagining it. That's not true," Gonzales remarked.

Former Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio on Sunday warned that the House could abolish the Senate should efforts to amend the Charter through PI, which he said "unconstitutional," make progress.

"Under their proposal, the present people's initiative, if that passes, the House alone can convene as a constituent assembly to propose amendments to the constitution," he said.

Carpio added that the current government could be transformed into a parliamentary system should PI advance.

"The proposal of the House in this people's initiative is that only they can propose changes to the Constitution. So there will really be a change; our landscape will change, the political environment will change," Carpio added.

For his part, Bataan Rep. Albert Garcia, National Unity Party's secretary general, reassured senators that the House is not supporting any move to abolish the Senate and that their eyes are centered on economic reforms that would uplift the economy.

While the fierce exchanges between members of the House and the Senate over their divergent stances on Cha-cha have yet to cool down, proponents in the lower chamber remain steadfast in backing the passage of Resolution of Both Houses 6, which proposes amendments to the Constitution's Articles XII, XIV, and XVI, despite Senator Joel Villanueva's remark that it would no longer push through.

In a manifesto, political party leaders in the House pledge to approve RBH 6 once it reaches the larger chamber of Congress.

"Our collaboration with the Senate…is a testament to our shared commitment to nurturing an economic landscape that is dynamic, inclusive, and forward-thinking, ensuring that prosperity reaches every corner of our nation," the political party leaders in the House said in their joint manifesto.

"The discourse on the proposed changes to the Constitution necessitates a clear and unified voice from us on these pivotal issues," they said.

On Tuesday, all 24 senators signed a manifesto condemning the ongoing PI efforts in the thick of allegations of a signature-buying drive purportedly shepherd by the House.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri labeled the ongoing signature campaign as not just "flawed" but also "unconstitutional."