BALANCING THE DISTRIBUTION OF … THE DISTRIBUTION OF GOVERNMENT POWERS (FEDERALISM) Check against...

ByNenePimentel

BALANCINGTHEDISTRIBUTIONOF

GOVERNMENTPOWERS(FEDERALISM)

Check against delivery

Why the proposal to shift to a federalsystem from the highly centralizedsystem of government by which thecountry is run today?

Primarily because the concentrationof powers in the Central Governmenthampers the speedy development ofthe nation.

Share power

The proposed solution wasfor the national government toshare power – political andeconomic – with the regional andlocal governments throughout thenation.

PEACEFULLY.

by converting the country into aFederal Republic.

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PRELIMINARYSTATEMENT

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WHAT IS GOVERNMENT?

Simply put, it is aninstitution of the Statewhere persons vested withgovernment powers andrequisite authoritymaintain law and order inthe territory under itscontrol for the developmentof the peoples residingtherein.

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INTHISREPUBLIC

DIFFERENT LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT POWERS ARE EXERCISEDWITHIN ITS TERRITORIAL AND POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS, NAMELY:

THE NATIONAL (OR CENTRAL) GOVERNMENT HAS THE MOSTPOWERS.

THE REGIONAL GOVERNMENT HAS LESS POWERS THAN THENATIONAL GOVERNMENT, BUT HAS MORE POWERS THAN THELOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS HAVE THE LEAST POWERS AMONG THETHREE GOVERNMENTAL CATEGORIES.

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Departments

PURSUANTTOTHEIRINDIVIDUALJURISDICTIONSAS DEFINEDBYTHECONSTITUTIONANDRELEVANTLAWS

THEPOWERSOFTHENATIONALGOVERNMENTareexercisedmainly by:

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LegislativeExecutive Judicial

AsidefromtheExecutive,Legislative&JudicialDepartments

THERE ARE CONSTITUTIONAL COMMISSIONS THATEXERCISE INDEPENDENT GOVERNMENT POWERSVESTED IN THEM BY THE CONSTITUTION, NAMELY:

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THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS (Article XIII, Sec. 17 et seq.)

TWO OTHER CONSTITUTIONAL BODIES WERE CREATEDBY THE CONSTITUTION AND ALSO VESTED WITHTREMENDOUS GOVERNMENT POWERS THAT ARE MEANTTO BE EXERCISED WITHOUT PARTISANCONSIDERATIONS:

THE OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN (Article XI, Sections 5 et seq.)

THEFOURCOMMISSIONSANDTHEOFFICEOFTHEOMBUDSMAN

CANNOT BE ABOLISHED BY CONGRESS OR BY ACTOF THE EXECUTIVE

THEY ENJOY FISCAL AUTONOMY

THEIR MAIN POWERS ARE DEFINED BY THECONSTITUTION, AND MAY NOT BE DIMINISHED,BUT, MAY BE ADDED TO BY LAW

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1.TheAutonomousRegionofMuslimMindanao(ARMM)

TWO RegionalGovernmentsarerecognizedbytheConstitution:

2.TheAutonomousRegionoftheCordilleras(CAR)

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1. TAXATION ‐ must be uniform, equitable &progressive (Art. VI, Sec. 28, Constitution).

2. EMINENT DOMAIN – Power to expropriate privateproperty must be for public use and upon payment ofjust compensation (Art. III, Sections 1 and 9, Constitution)

3. POLICE POWER ‐ Power to deliver public services inhealth, morals, and safety to promote the generalwelfare of the people.

BASICPOWERSOFGOVERNMENTARESAIDTOINCLUDE:

The President and the Vice President, the top two executiveofficials of the government, and the members of our two‐chamberlegislature are elected directly by the qualified voters of the country.

The Republic has a presidential form of government .

Other countries are run by parliamentary governments. There, themembers of the parliament (the law‐making body) are elected directly bythe qualified voters. The Members of Parliament, in turn,elect the executive officials of the land.

Under the Constitution:

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WHICHISBETTER?ThePresidentialortheParliamentaryformofgovernment?There are so many considerations that must be taken into account torespond to the question adequately, not the least of which is thehistorical background of either form of government adopted byparticular countries.

Examples:

The Presidential Form seems to be working well in theUS.

The Parliamentary Form appears to be addressing thebasic concerns of the majority and the minority sectors inIndia. 14

PRESENTSYSTEMOFPHILIPPINEGOVERNMENT

IS UNITARY AND HIGHLY CENTRALIZED Although, certain GOVERNMENT POWERS

ARE NOW SHAREDWITH LGUs

THROUGH

THELOCALGOVERNMENTCODE,andotherlegislations

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THREEMAJORNATIONALGOVERNMENTDEPARTMENTS

ARELARGELYAFFECTEDBYTHELOCALGOVERNMENTCODE

Agriculture Health SocialWelfare

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Sec.17ofthe1991LocalGovernmentCodedirectsLGUs:

to deliver basic services and provide facilitiescurrently vested on them;

to discharge the functions and responsibilities ofnational agencies and offices devolved to thempursuant to this Code, and

to exercise such other powers and … other functionsand responsibilities as are necessary, appropriate, orincidental to (the) efficient and effective provision ofthe basic services and facilities enumerated herein.

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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

NOWALSOAMAJORCONCERNOFLGUslike:

1.Solidwastedisposalsystem;2.Services/facilitiesrelatedtogeneralhygieneandsanitation;3.Implementationofcommunity‐basedforestryprojectsincludingsocialforestryprograms,andsimilarprojects,and

4.Managementandcontrolofcommunalforests.18

Under the LG Code:

Onlyhassupervisorypowers,notcontrol,overLGUsonbehalfofthepresident

As the Department of the Interior, its main functionsdeal with the police.

ITMUSTALSOBEMENTIONEDTHAT:

THEDEPARTMENTOFTHEINTERIORANDLOCALGOVERNMENT(DILG)

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FOREMPHASIS:

THEGREATLYCENTRALIZED,UNITARYFEATUREOFTHEGOVERNMENTPERSISTS

Despite the passage of the Local GovernmentCode, the system of government of thecountry is still highly centralized andunitary as opposed to the federal system.

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AMONGOTHERTHINGS:

“THE HIGHLY CENTRALIZED, UNITARY SYSTEM … RESULTED IN AN IMBALANCE IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES AMONG LGUs.”Impliedly, it has fueled the armed rebellion of Muslimfactions in parts of Mindanao against the government,and

HAS HAMPERED THE SPEEDY DEVELOPMENT OF THE LOCALCOMMUNITIES, AND OF THE PEOPLE RESIDING THEREIN.

SOMEPRACTICALCONSEQUENCES

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HENCE,theproposaltoadoptaconcrete,doable,practicalplan

tospeedupthedevelopmentofthecountryandourpeople,anddissipatethenational

causesofunrestbyinstalling:

THEFEDERALSYSTEM(withapresidentialform)

OFGOVERNMENTIN THEREPUBLIC

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Seminal 1982 idea

The plan formally advocated Federalizing thePhilippines in 1982.

The federal idea, then, was seminal in manyrespects.

It was proposed to serve as the basis of a viablealternative to the dictatorship, and bring about adistribution of government powers previouslyconcentrated in the national government for so long.

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Some provisions of the presentConstitution are proposed forretention despite the move tofederalize the country.

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THERE WILL ONLY BE ONE CONSTITUTIONIn general, more powers of government will be devolved

to the Federal

States (and to their LGUs) than what the situation is today.

Hence, the central federal government will retain basically only ahandful of powers.

Examples of powers that will be retained in the Federal CentralGovernment:

1. National Defense and Security by the Armed Forces ofthe Republic;

2. National law enforcement against crime by the NationalPolice;

3. One monetary system for obvious reasons;

4. One Flag;

5. One Foreign Policy; 25

6.ONE BASIC NATIONAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM;The curriculum may be added to by the Federal States to augment their

potential for development as befits the needs of their people.Example:

CurriculumintheCordillerasCurriculum for Muslims/IPs

NUMBEROFLGUsWHENTHEPROPOSALWASMADE:

Provinces– 81

Cities – 145

Municipalities– 1,489

Barangays– 42,036

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HOWMANYFEDERALSTATESSHALLTHECOUNTRYHAVE?

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TO BE CREATED BASICALLY OUT OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE REGIONS alreadyexisting. By doing so, the identities of every proposed federal state are alreadyknown by and large by the people.

ITISPROPOSEDTHATTHECOUNTRYSHALLHAVE:

12FEDERALSTATES

1. The Federal State of Northern Luzon covering:

How many States will Luzon have?

Luzon will have FIVE Federal States, namely:

No. of Provinces

No. of Cities

No. of Municipalities

No. of Barangays

9 13 206 5,576

TuguegaraoCityasthecapitalofthestate

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COMBINED TOTAL POPULATION = 7,977,535COMBINED TOTAL LAND AREA = 4,124,143ha

1. The Federal State of Northern Luzon covering:

Tuguegarao Cityasthecapitalofthestate

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PROVINCES RegionI

Ilocos Norte Ilocos Sur Pangasinan LaUnion

RegionII Batanes Cagayan Isabela Quirino NuevaViscaya

CITIES RegionI

Batac Laoag Candon Vigan SanFernando Aluminos Dagupan SanCarlos Urdaneta

RegionII Tuguegarao Isabela Kawayan Ilagan

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… Luzon States

2. The Federal State of Central Luzon covering:

No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

7 14 116 3,102

TarlacCityasthecapitalofthestate

COMBINED TOTAL POPULATION = 9,590,223 COMBINED TOTAL LAND AREA = 2,201,490ha

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2. The Federal State of Central Luzon covering:

TarlacCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionIII

Aurora Bataan Bulacan NuevaEcija Pampanga Tarlac Zambales

CITIES RegionIII

Balanga Malolos Mecauayan SanJosedelMonte Cabanatuan Gapan MuñozScienceCity Palayan SanJose Angeles Mabalacat SanFernando Tarlac Olongapo

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3. The Federal State of Southern Tagalog covering:

No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

5 19 123 4,018

… Luzon States

TagaytayCityasthecapitalofthestate


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3. The Federal State of Southern Tagalog covering:

TagaytayCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionIV‐A

Cavite Laguna Batangas Quezon Rizal

CTIES RegionIV‐A

Bacoor Cavite Dasmarinas GeneralTrias Imus Tagaytay TreceMartirez

Biñan Cabuyao Calamba SabPablo SanPedro SantaRosa

Batangas Lipa Tanauan

Lucena Tayabas

Antipolo

4. The Federal State of Bicol covering:

No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

5 6 87 2,921

… Luzon States

LegazpiCityasthecapitalofthestate

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4. The Federal State of Bicol covering:

Legazpi Cityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionV Albay CamarinesNorte CamarinesSur Catanduanes Sorsogon

CITIES RegionV

Legaspi Ligao Tabaco Naga Sorsogon Iriga

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… Luzon States

5. The Federal State of Cordillera covering:

No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

6 2 75 1,176

BaguioCityasthecapitalofthestate


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… Luzon States

5. The Federal State of Cordillera covering:

BaguioCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES

CAR Abra Apayao Kalinga Mountain

Province Benguet Ifugao

CITIESTabukBaguio

Metro‐Manila as a Federal AdministrativeRegion will be treated like Washington D.C., or NewDelhi or Kuala Lumpur.

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WHATABOUTMETRO‐MANILA?

Metro‐Manila will be convertedinto a Federal AdministrativeRegion covering:

No.ofCities:16No.ofMunicipalities:1(Pateros)No.ofBarangays:1,706

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

6 7 136 4,390

How many States will the Visayas have?

The Visayas will have FOUR Federal States.

1. The Federal State of Eastern Visayas covering:

CatbaloganCityasthecapitalofthestate


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1. The Federal State of Eastern Visayas covering:

Catbalogan Cityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionVIII EasternSamar NortherSamar Samar Biliran Leyte SouthernLeyte

CITIES RegionVIII

Borongan Calbayog Catbalogan Baybay Ormoc Tacloban Maasim

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

5 17 136 3,553

…Visayas States

2. The Federal State of Central Visayas covering:

ToledoCityasthecapitalofthestate


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2. The Federal State of Central Visayas covering:

ToledoCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionVII

Bohol Cebu Siquijor NegrosOriental Masbate

CITIES RegionVII

Tagbilaran

Bogo Cebu Carcar Danao Lapu‐lapu Mandaue Naga Talisay Toledo

Bais Bayawan Canlaon Dumaguete Guihulngan Tanjay

Masbate

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

6 16 117 3,990

…Visayas States

3. The Federal State of Western Visayas covering:

IloiloCityasthecapitalofthestate

COMBINED TOTAL POPULATION = 6,165,999

COMBINED TOTAL LAND AREA = 2,079,418ha

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3. The Federal State of Western Visayas covering:

IloiloCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionVI

Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo NegrosOccidental

CITIES RegionVII

Roxas

Iloilo Passi

Bacolod Bago Cadiz Escalante Himamaylan

Kabankalan LaCarlota SanCarlos Silay Sipalay Sagay Talisay Victorias

WHATABOUTTHENEWNEGROSISLANDREGION?

ThenewregioncomposedoftheProvincesofNegrosOccidentalandNegrosOrientalmay becreatedasaseparate FederalStateofNegros.Or

Negros Occidental may remain a part of the FederalState of Western Visayas, and Negros Oriental, a partof the Federal State of Central Visayas.

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

5 2 71 1,459

4. The Federal State of Minparom covering:

…Visayas States

Mamburao,MindoroOccidentalasthecapitalofthestate

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COMBINED TOTAL POPULATION = 2,521,998

COMBINED TOTAL LAND AREA = 2,961,632ha

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4. The Federal State of Minparom covering:

…Visayas States

Mamburao,MindoroOccidentalasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES RegionVI‐B

MindoroOriental MindoroOccidental PalawanandtheKalayaanIslands

Romblon Marinduque

CITIES Calapan PuertoPrincesa

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

11 16 188 4,528

1. The Federal State of Northern Mindanao covering:

How many States will Mindanao have?

Mindanao will have THREE FederalStates.

CagayandeOroCityasthecapitalofthestate


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1. The Federal State of Northern Mindanao covering:

CagayandeOroCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCESRegionIX

ZamboangaSibugay ZamboangadelNorte ZamboangadelSur

RegionX Bukidnon Camiguin LanaodelNorte MisamisOccidental MisamisOriental

RegionXIII AgusandelNorte DinagatIsland SurigaodelNorte

CITIES Dapitan Dipolog

Pagadian Zamboanga

Malaybalay Valencia

Iligan

Oroqueta Ozamis Tangub

CagayandeOro Gingoog ElSalvador

Butuan Cabadbaran

Surigao

THEPROPOSEDNORTHERNMINDANAOFEDERALSTATE

MAYBETOOLARGE.ITMAYBEDIVIDEDINTOTWO:

(a) The Federal State of North‐Western Mindanaocovering the Zamboanga Provinces, Lanao delNorte, Misamis Occidental, and Misamis Oriental;and

(b) The Federal State of North‐Eastern Mindanaocomprising the Agusan Provinces, Bukidnon, andSurigao Provinces, and Dinagat.

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No. of Provinces

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

11 13 118 2,943

2. The Federal State of Southern Mindanao covering:

…Mindanao States

DavaoCityasthecapitalofthestate

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2. The Federal State of Southern Mindanao

DavaoCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCESRegionXI

DavaoOriental CompostelaValley DavaodelSur DavaoOccidental DavaodelNorte

RegionXII SouthCotabato Sarangani NorthCotabato SultanKudarat

RegionXIII(Caraga) AgusandelSur SurigaodelSur

CITIES Mati

Davao Digos

Panabo Samal Tagum

GeneralSantos

Koronadal

Cotabato

Tacurong

Bayugan

Bislig Tandag

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No. of Provinces*

No. of Cities


No. of Barangays

5 4 116 2,572

3. TheFederalStateofBangsamorocovering:

…Mindanao States

MarawiCityasthecapitalofthestate


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3. The Federal State of Bangsamoro

MarawiCityasthecapitalofthestate

PROVINCES LanaodelSur Maguindanao(ShariffKabunsuan)

Basilan Sulu Tawi‐Tawi

CITIES Isabela Lamitan

Marawi

Cotabato

APROPOSEDCHANGEONTHEBANGSAMOROFEDERALSTATE

TwoFederalStatesfortheBangsamoropeoples:

One Federal State for the Mainland Muslims of Mindanao(Maranaws, Maguidanaos, and sub‐tribes), and

Another Federal State for the Off‐Shore Islands Muslims (ofBasilan, Sulu and Tawi‐Tawi)

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WhyBangsamoro FederalStateisvitaltothenation

The secessionist movements ofthe various Moro groups started sincethe Spanish colonial era.

The secessions cannot be solved permanently byforce.

The suggested solution: Federalize the country andconvert the present Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanaointo a Bangsamoro Federal State.

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But, when cases involve Muslim vs a Christian or aLumad even in the territorial jurisdiction of theBangsaMoro, national law will apply.

THE ADOPTION OF THESHARIAH AS A LEGAL BASISFOR THE SETTLEMENT OFDISPUTES SHOULD CLEARLYPROVIDE THAT IT APPLIES INTHE BANGSAMORO ENTITYONLY WHEN THE LITIGANTSINVOLVE MUSLIMS.

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The same rule will be followed in the BangsaMoro ifthe litigants are Christians vs Lumads or vice versa.

AddSABAH

As a part of the Republic’s territory.

But let’s assert our claim to Sabah peacefullyand in accord with the internationally‐accepted principles of settling disputes by theUN, ASEAN, and other internationalorganizations

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SabahbelongstothePhilippines

Sabah is only 217.9 miles or 350.67 kilometers fromBongao, Tawi‐Tawi.

Sabah is ours. Not Malaysia’s. Filipino population: 1.5 million (est. 2013)

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RP’sOWNERSHIPOFSABAH

The Sultanate of Sulu had authorized the Philippine Government to pursue the claim.Sometime during the martial law years, Marcos relinquished the claim back to theheirs.The present Sultan of Sulu wants the claim reinstituted by the government with theheirs having certain rights over the property once recovered.

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Based on historical fact.

Sabah was given to the Sultan of Sulu as hisreward for assisting the Sultan of Brunei torepel his enemies in the 17th century.

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SABAHMAYBECONVERTEDINTOANOTHERFEDERALSTATEOFTHENATION

National Territory,defined

The territory of the Federal Republic should also unequivocally include twopreviously ambiguously claimed islands, reefs or shoals: theScarborough reefs, and Kalayaan Islands.

Federal State boundaries will expand present regional boundaries.

The Federal States should be constituted out of bigger politicalterritories to provide the environment for competitiveness andsustainability rather than create them out of provinces that in manyinstances might simply be too small to survive as Federal States.

FEDERALIZEDRPBOUNDARIES

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Groupofislets,shoals,cays,andreefsmostlyinhabitableisnowamunicipalityofKalayaan..

Ithasonebarangay:Pagasa.

Itis519kilometersfromPalawan.

Itisoursbyrightofdiscoveryandoccupancy

Inhabitants–morethan300civilians,includingchildren.

It’snewlyelectedmayor inthe2016elections is RobertodelMundo,whobeattwo‐termMayor EugenioBito‐Onon,Jr.

*IncludeKalayaan

MOREONKALAYAAN

• SIDELIGHTS ON THE ELECTIONS IN KALAYAANMUNICIPALITY:

• Retired Air Force Sgt. del Mundo received 142 votes;

• Bitoonon got 59 votes, and the third candidate for mayor,

• Retired Navy Commander Rodrigo Jaca, 28 votes.

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IncludeScarboroughShoal

The shoal is barely 124 nautical miles away fromMasinloc, Zambales, and is within our 200 mileexclusive economic zone.

It is 550 nautical miles away from Hainan Island, theclosest Chinese territory.

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PRESIDENTIALFORM,MAYBERETAINEDUNDER

FEDERALIZEDRP

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A president and a vice president will be elected nation-wide.

Qualifications, the same as in current Constitutionexcept for their educational qualifications. (At least,Baccalaureate Degree Holders from Colleges recognized bythe Government)

The president and the VP will be elected as a team.

Terms: 6 years without reelection.

Term Limits under current Constitution are intended toapply to those who had been president

BICAMERALFEDERALCONGRESS

(1) The Senate whose members willbe elected by State, and

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POWERS in general: Enact laws for thegovernance of the Federal Republic

TheFederalCongresswillhavetwoHouses:

(2) The House of Representativeswhose members will be elected bydistrict.

Increasing NumberofSenators

Every State shall be represented by sixsenators elected by the qualified voters in state‐wideelections. 12 x 6 = 72 plus 6 for Metro‐Manila = 78 + 9overseas senators = 87.

Justification for the increase

The 24 senatorial limit was based on a Philippinepopulation of 20 million or so. Now we are roughly 104million. The increase in the number of senators (and ofthe members of the House) may be justified by the risein our population.

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OTHERCOUNTRIESWITHLESSPOPULATIONSHAVELARGERSENATES

Moreover, as the next slide shows,compared with the Philippines, manycountries with far less populationshave more representatives in theirupper chambers.

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10 NATIONS WHOSE UPPER LEGISLATIVE CHAMBERS HAVE MORE LEGISLATORS THAN OUR

SENATE

Country Population Members/ Upper Chamber

(1) UK 64.60 million 797(2) France 64.67 million 348(3) Italy 59.80 million 315(4) Spain 46.06 million 266(5) Egypt 93.39 million 245(6) Thailand 68.15 million 250(7) Ethiopia 101.85 million 112(8) Australia 24.31 million 76(9) Malaysia 30.57 million 70(10) Ireland 4.72 million 60

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THE FEDERAL STATES

(Composed of the different Provinces)

FEDERALSTATEGOVERNORANDFEDERALVICEGOVERNOR

(ElectedbytheFederalState)

FEDERALSTATELEGISLATURES(RepresentativesfromeveryProvinces/HighlyUrbanizedCities/

Sectoral groups)

PROVINCES(ProvincialGovernor/ViceGovernor/ProvincialCouncil

Members

MUNICIPALITIES(MunicipalMayor/ViceMayor/MunicipalCouncil

Members)

BARANGAYS(Barangay Captain/

Barangay CouncilMembers)

CITIES(CityMayor/ViceMayor/CityCouncilMembers

EVERY FEDERAL STATE WILL HAVE OWN GOVERNOR

& VICE-GOVERNORQualifications Natural born citizen

A registered voter of any province, city,municipality or barangays of the State

At least, a graduate of a public or private highschool recognized by the government

At least, 30 years of age on the day of the election,and an actual resident of the State for, at least 5years immediately prior to the election.

Term of Office Shall serve for no more than three consecutiveterms of 4 years each which shall begin at 12 noonof the 30th day of June next following the day oftheir election and shall end at noon of the same day4 years thereafter

Manner ofElection

Shall be elected by the qualified voters of theprovinces, cities, municipalities and barangayslocated in the State.

There will still be Provincial Governors, City or MunicipalMayors and other local government officials. 73

Every State will have a Unicameral State Legislature.Three State Legislators will represent every province andcity in the State Legislature.Elected by their peers in the Sangguniang Panlalawiganand Sangguniang Panlungsod respectively.Three Sectoral Representatives will represent farmers,fisher folk & senior citizens for every province and city in theState Legislature.

POWERS in general: Enact laws for thegovernance of the State

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STATELEGISLATORS

SUPREME COURT STRUCTURE, RETAINED

The Supreme Court is retained including itspowers, other than over constitutional issues.

The Supreme Court supervises all lower courts:Intermediate Appellate Court, Sandiganbayan,Regional Trial Courts, the Shariah Courts, City &Municipal Court.

All the courts shall have constitutional deadlinesto meet in rendering their decisions

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CONSTITUTIONAL COURT CREATED TO RULE ONCONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES:

Same qualifications as Supreme Court justices.

Branches located on site: ONE EACH in Luzon,Visayas and Mindanao.

NUMBER OF JUSTICES PER BRANCH OF CONSTITUTIONALCOURT:

FIVE (5) FOR EACH BRANCH.

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SHARIAHCOURTS

SHALL BE RETAINED.

OTHER MEANS OFSETTLING DISPUTESIN ACCORD WITH THECULTURE ANDTRADITION OFTRIBAL MINORITIESSHOULD BERECOGNIZED

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Supreme Court 2 years from filing

Court of Appeals 1.8 months from filing

Sandiganbayan and other appellate courts

1.8 months from filing

RTC 1.6 months from filing

City and Municipal Courts

1 year from filing

DEADLINES FOR DECISIONS

Should be strictly enforced to ensure delivery of speedy justice.

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DEADLINESFORSHARIAHANDOTHERTRIBALCOURTS

SHOULD ALSO BE FIXED TAKING INTO ACCOUNTTRIBAL CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS AND THE NEEDFOR JUST AND SPEEDY JUSTICE

DELAY IN DELIVERY OF JUSTICE TOLITIGANTS IS ONE OF THE MAJOR ILLSOF OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM

PROPOSED LOCATIONS OF THE COURTS:

Supreme Court and Constitutional Courtdivisions should be located aside from Metro‐Manila also insuitable places in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Intermediate Court of Appeals divisions should bepermanently assigned to every State;

Sandiganbayan divisions should hold offices in specific areasin Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao aside from its office in Metro‐Manila;

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The seats of power of the major branches of government will bedispersed.

SEATSOFPOWER,DISPERSED

The Federal Executive Department will hold officesin the Federal Administrative Region of Metro‐Manila.

The Federal Legislature will hold office inthe Federal State of Central Visayas.

The Federal Supreme Court, and theConstitutional Court will hold their main offices in theFederal State of Northern Mindanao.

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ExecutiveDepartmentisinPretoria

LegislativeDepartmentisinCapeTown

SupremeCourtisinBloemfontein

An example of a government that has mandated the location of the three major divisions of government is South Africa.

Distance between Pretoria and Bloemfonteinis 424.87 km. or 264 miles.

Distance between Bloemfontein and CapeTown Bloemfontein is 911.81 km. or 566.57miles

Distance between Cape Town and Pretoriais 1,457km. Or 912 miles.

The powers and structures of provinces, cities,municipalities, and barangays are untouched.

It is up to the Federal States to change LGU structuresand powers subject to the approval of the voters in theareas affected in plebiscites called for the purpose.

SAME QUALIFICATIONS for regional and local officialsexcept for educational requirements.

It may be time to require more educationalqualifications of our public officials than just theability to read and write.

LGU’s, Intact

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In allocating the resources of the Republic, all revenues shallbe the basis, not only taxes collected by the Bureau of InternalRevenue. The sharing percentages shall be as follows:

Percentage Shareof20% FederalGovernment80% States

Despite the increase of senators(and members of the House), therevenue shares of the Federal States andthe LGUs will increase.

LGUSHARES,INCREASED

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Under this formula, the shares of the provinces,cities, municipalities and barangays will be bigger thanwhat is currently provided for under the local governmentcode.

Percentage Shareof

30% StateGovernment

70%Provinces,Cities,

Municipalities&Barangays

SHARING OF 80% BETWEEN STATES AND LGUs

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ALLOCATION OF FUNDS SHOULDENSURE THAT VITAL NEEDS NOT ONLYOF THE MAJORITY SECTORS OF SOCIETY,BUT ALSO OF TRIBAL MINORITIES AREPROVIDED FOR.

STRICT ACCOUNTING PROCEDURESSHOULD ACCOMPANY THE ALLOCATIONOFMORE FUNDS TO THE LGUs.

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Equalization Fund

To address the reality that not all the Federal Statesare born equal in terms of resources and opportunities, anequalization fund administered by the FederalGovernment to assist States in dire need of developmentfunds should be created.

The Federal States should be represented in theauthority administering the Equalization Fund.

FederalStates

LOANCOMMISSION

The Federal Government and every State shouldbe represented in the Commission.

At least, one-fourth of the members of theCommission should come from Qualified NGOs.

Equitable shares of the loan repayments will beborne by the States that benefited from theloans

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•To ensure that foreignloans of the country arefaithfully paid, a LoanCommission is created.

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Political & economic objectivesTo enable our participants to air their concerns, let me

conclude this statement with this thought: the federal system ismeant to accomplish, at least, twomajor things:

1. Cause the speedy developmentof the entire country by unleashing theforces of competitiveness among theStates, and

2. Dissipate the causes ofrebellion in the country and particularlyin Mindanao.

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Under the unitary system that has characterizedthe government for centuries we only had one center ofpower, finance and development: Metro‐Manila.

The move to federalize thecountry is not simply a ‘political’undertaking it is also aneconomic effort. By creating 11 (ormore) Federal States and by convertingMetro‐Manila as a federal administrativeregion, we immediately establish 12centers of power, finance anddevelopment throughout the country.

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REDRESSING GRIEVANCES OF CENTURIES

The federal proposal will hopefully provide ajust and lasting redress for the centuries‐old grievancesof the powerless and the neglected sectors of society, likethe Moro peoples of Mindanao and the Lumads.

By federalizing the Republic, the States willconcretely address the needs of their componentsectors more easily.

And in the case of the Moropeoples, their own federal state wouldconceivably enable them to run theirstate government according to theircustoms and traditions subject, ofcourse, to the norms of moderndemocratic governments.

How would the federal system be adopted?

By revising the Constitution through any of the three waysmandated by the basic Charter, itself:

(1) Constitutional Convention where provincial or citydelegates elected by the people throughout the nation wouldperform the revision; or

(2) Constituent Assembly where the members of the Houseand of the Senate would do it; or

(3) People's Initiative where, as the term implies, the voters, atleast, 12% of them, all over the land would adopt a petition torevise the Constitution.

But, whatever the mode of revising the Constitution as mentionedabove is resorted to, the change must be approved by the peoplein a PLEBISCITE.

THANK YOU

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