By Joel Rocamora

Reported by: Matt Ordoñez

Josh Lim
Rolito Piñon
Michaelangelo Carreon
 PIRMA- a popular org that spearheaded
the movement aimed at promoting term
extension for Ramos through
amendments
 Backlash with other groups(BAYAN,
PAHRA,BURA)
“TO CHANGE OR NOT TO
CHANGE….”

Presidential vs. Parliamentary

Affirmative
-Political stability,
Ramos= indispensable
-Necessary in political
crises=economic reform
-”Strong State”-Ramos
- Make a functioning bureaucracy
and effective political party
system.
Problem-no credibility for
genuine reform
-perpetuate himself to power
- Bureaucracy- degenerates
efficacy of State apparatus
Opposition
-term extension=insufficient
reason
-nakakahiya/ walang delicadeza
-weakens the pillars of long-term
democratic stability
-Parliamentary better but
untimely(“Not until 2010”,
Abueva)
-Problem-freezes reform
-no “counterproposal”
 PRESIDENTIALISM
 a system of government where the ministers of the executive
branch are drawn from the legislature and are accountable to
that body, such that the executive and legislative branches of
government are intertwined. In such a system, the head of the
government is both de facto chief executive and chief legislator.
 one in which the only democratically legitimate institution is the
parliament; in such a regime, the government’s authority is
completely dependent on parliament’s confidence.
 Elite Dominance
 ineffectiveness
 low level of political participation among the populace
 Bell Trade Act of 1946
 Reciprocal free trade
 The Philippines could not impose taxes on
exports to the United States.
 The exchange rate of the Philippine peso was
pegged to the dollar.
What makes the Philippines State Weak?
“…power groups work to influence
government. That’s what politics is all about
anywhere in the world.” – Rocamora
“People participate in the Philippine elections
for the same reason they go to cockfights; it
is highly entertaining as spectator sports.”
- Rocamora
A commonly accepted definition of a parliamentary
system of government is a system of government
where the ministers of the executive branch are
drawn from the legislature and are accountable to
that body, such that the executive and legislative
branches of government are intertwined.
 In such a system, the head of government is both de
facto chief executive and chief legislator. 
 Still another author states that parliamentary forms
of government is one in which the only democratically
legitimate institution is the parliament; in such a
regime, the government’s authority is completely
dependent on parliament’s confidence.
 Constitutional Convention

 Constitutional Assembly
 “con-con” is one of the three modes in which the
“Constitution of the Philippines” could be
amended or revised.
 Under Article XVII, Sec.3 of the Constitution of
the Philippines: “The Congress may, by a vote of
two-thirds of all its Members, call a
constitutional convention, or by a majority vote
of all its Members, submit to the electorate the
question of calling such a convention.”
 "con-ass" is one of the three modes in which the
“1987 Constitution of the Philippines” could be
amended or revised.
  recently known to many Filipinos as Charter
Change
 the last time the constitution was appended, it
led to the prolonging of the term of President
Marcos and eventually, Martial Law
 Politics as transactional
 Political exchanges are seen as “private”
transactions rather than “public” ones
 Filipinos can’t distinguish between private and
public use of funds
 Leadership
 Filipinos
traditionally have settled disputes and
other matters of importance “out-of-court”
 Zero-sum character of electoral contests
 Moves for Cha-Cha largely originate from
end-term politicians who are constrained
by term restrictions to run again.
 In theory, constitutional amendments via
people’s initiative is supposed to move
amending powers from politicians to the
people
 Initiativethough still remains in the hands of
politicians, partly because the discourse on
political reform is undeveloped
 Local politics has been changing at an
accelerating pace
 The old notion of patronage politics has
collapsed, forcing leaders to go further
afield in securing electoral posts
 Shifts in electoral practice all point to
specialization, specificity and
differentiation