Ignorance of the law excuses no one, especially if the person saying it is the one who wrote and signed the law.

Thus said House Deputy Speaker David “Jayjay” Suarez, who took the fight to senators calling into question the P26.7 billion in financial assistance in this year’s Department of Social Welfare and Development budget being linked to the contentious people’s initiative to amend the 1987 Constitution.

The House leader was referring to Senators Imee Marcos, Ronald dela Rosa and Risa Hontiveros, whom he accused of suddenly being oblivious of the DSWD’s AKAP or Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita program.

Suarez questioned how the senators did not know about the P26.7-billion AKAP fund when they gave it their stamp of approval in the bicam report of the 2024 General Appropriations Bill before it was submitted to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for his signature.

“Their signatures are there not only on the special provision on the AKAP but on the entire bicam report. Do they really have the habit of signing a document without reading it first? What about the other laws they passed in the Senate? Didn’t they even read before they signed?” Suarez said.

The Quezon lawmaker was evidently irked by Senator Marcos’ unseemly scrutiny during a public hearing on the PI earlier this week of the AKAP funds allocated under the DSWD’s 2024 budget, which she sponsored in the Senate.

“Even without evidence, a project that will help our poor countrymen is being colored and demonized. Well, that seems to be the current trend in the Senate — just accuse after accusing even without proof,” Suarez said.

Alien, magical

Senator Marcos, who chairs the Committee on Electoral Reforms and People’s Participation, said the P26.7 billion allocated in the DSWD’s budget was “alien” and “magical” to her. The senator raised concerns that the new social program was being used to entice the public to support the PI.

Meanwhile, the senators said the individuals who signed the People’s Initiative petition should not be required to provide an explanation on the withdrawal forms released by the Commission on Elections.

According to Senator Marcos, the withdrawal of signatures should be “as easy as affixing the same.”

“Requiring an explanation certainly makes it more difficult for people to withdraw their signatures en masse,” she said in a text message to reporters.

“They were not asked for an explanation when they signed the PI sheets, why should they be asked to explain themselves if they decide to withdraw their signatures?” she added.

Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva echoed the same sentiment, stressing that the withdrawal form should not be “complicated.”

While the release of the withdrawal form by the Comelec was a “welcome development,” Villanueva said that those who signed the petition should not be required to explain their reasons for backing out.

“They should not be required to explain their reason for withdrawing their signatures because this is their right. If the process of signing was simple, retracting their support should also be simple,” he said.

“That’s why it is important for the Comelec to have a clear direction, especially since the Supreme Court itself said that there is not enough law for the People’s Initiative that can amend the Constitution,” he added.

For his part, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go welcomed the Comelec’s approval of the withdrawal form, which he said would allow Filipinos, particularly those “maliciously made to believe they were signing for some government assistance, to retract their signatures in the so-called People’s Initiative to amend or revise the Constitution.”

Go reminded the electorate who signed the PI of their right to retract their support for something they had not fully understood.

“To our fellow Filipinos, if you signed a document that was not well explained to you, or you realized that you are not in support of what you signed up for, you have the right to retract it,” he said in a separate statement.

“Amid recent insinuations that some senators had given up the fight to protect and preserve the Senate, let me say this again in clear and unmistakable words: I strongly oppose and will continue to oppose any attempt to tinker with our Constitution that will erode the checks and balances, including having the Senate of the people as a bastion of our hard-won democracy,” Go added

Near poor

According to DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, AKAP was designed for those who belong to the “near poor” segment of society, such as households delisted from the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and minimum wage earners vulnerable to economic shocks such as runaway inflation that could quickly put them back below the poverty line.

Gatchalian was quick to defend the AKAP allocation, saying that “not a single centavo” had been spent because the DSWD “is still crafting the guidelines to ensure the program’s smooth and efficient fulfillment of the agency’s mandate.”

A staunch opponent of cha-cha, Senator Marcos alleged that “all soft projects including AKAP must go through the Office of the Speaker,” whom she suspected was the architect of the PI.

Romualdez, who has denied having a hand in the controversial drive, has yet to issue a rebuttal to his cousin Marcos’ latest insinuation.

In a press conference on Thursday, Deputy Majority Leader Janette Garin called on the Senate to stop maligning the AKAP, which she said is becoming collateral damage in the ongoing tension between senators and congressmen over constitutional amendments.

Garin expressed concern that the “baseless accusations” could tarnish the reputation of AKAP, which she said is not merely a frivolous endeavor but a vital lifeline for individuals experiencing financial hardship and is aid to workers grappling with rising commodity prices.

Even without reason

Meanwhile, the Comelec said on Friday the poll body will be accepting signatures on the withdrawal forms without the signatories having to give a reason.

“With or without reasons, we will accept the withdrawal forms,” Comelec chairperson George Garcia said in a message to reporters.

The Comelec released the withdrawal forms on Thursday.

With the release of the withdrawal forms, Albay Rep. Joey Salceda said this would be an optimal time to discuss Charter change “based on the merits alone.”

“At least now, questions of motive or origin of the people’s initiative can no longer be used as an excuse or distraction from the simple truth that we need to open up,” Salceda said on Friday.

The lawmaker-economist supports the PI to relax the restrictive economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.

“Both the initiative and the withdrawal are in accordance with the law. I would have gone all the way with the people’s initiative, down to its logical conclusion. But the House is merely a supporter, not the initiator of the effort. So the proponents will have their way,” he said.