House Speaker Martin Romualdez revealed that the House of Representatives will push for the amendments of the 1987 Constitution in 2024.
Deputy Speaker Dong Gonzales said that the chamber is exploring options that will not need the involvement of the Senate since charter change proposals often do not move in the Senate.
“I believe 2024 will allow us again to revisit the whole issue of the constitution because I think it’s timely that we revisit and I say we’d like to focus very much on the economic provisions,” Romualdez said.
“We would be studying this over the break. And perhaps there might be some initiatives even during the break that would prepare us for the ensuing year and perhaps what would be our legacy in the 19th Congress, which is to review and revisit the 1987 Constitution and make it more attuned, sensitive and responsive to the times,” he added.
In an ABS-CBN News report, Romualdez said that they are eyeing to do a people’s initiative that would let voters decide if congressmen and senators have to vote together.
“We are thinking right now of addressing the procedural gap or question as to how we amend the Constitution. We will highly recommend that we embark on a people’s initiative…to cure this impasse, so to speak, on how we vote,” Romualdez said.
Gonzales on the other hand hopes to be done with their character change proposal before the third State of the Nation Address of President Bongbong Marcos.
“So we’ll try to pursue it by next year, I think early, on the resumption of our third regular session, we will tackle the amendments of the 1987 Constitution,” Gonzales said.
“I think kung in coordination with other congressperson and the Upper House, I think we can get the target, I think before SONA if ever,” the lawmaker added.
