Charles Teves
Netizens were surprised after Senator Robin Padilla called on the public to stop voting for political candidates who are more prosperous and more popular.
Padilla backs eliminating the party-list system if political provisions in the Constitution are amended via a constitutional convention.
As the head of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Codes, Padilla also advocated for the strengthening of the party system. This was a solution to break the cycle of voters choosing candidates based on popularity and wealth.
The senator shared in an interview on DZBB radio, “Kung mapupunta tayo sa Concon, yan dapat una nating gibain. Dahil ang party list system ay, my goodness gracious, di ko na makita, mula magdesisyon ang ating Korte Suprema na payagan na pati mga mayayaman, nawala na po ng anghang at sustansya. E dapat po yan e mga sektor na di naririnig. E ngayon ewan ko, sa totoo lang po.”
“Ang kinatawan, naging katawa-tawa,” he added.
Padilla also pushed for enhancing the party system so that voters would choose candidates based on their party’s principles rather than simply on the candidate’s fame or financial status.
“Sa totoo lang, kung gusto natin mabago talaga ang pulitika sa Pilipinas, palakasin natin ang party system. Tigilan na po natin ang kaboboto dahil sikat at dahil ito may pera. Alam nyo kung nabago natin ang Constitution at mapalakas natin ang partido ang iboboto nyo na po ang adhikain ng partido, di na yung sikat,” he said.
Padilla stated that he was not against modifying the political provisions of the Constitution through a constitutional convention. Still, he believes that amending the economic provisions through a constituent assembly should be prioritized.
Netizens agree with Padilla since he only got elected due to his popularity.
E di pagalitan mo mga bumoto sa yo, ano akala mo, binoto ka nila dahil sa credentials mo? Siraulo! https://t.co/8XhSjN0ULJ
— simply_clinton (@Simply_Clinton) February 27, 2023
The irony.
Hahahahahahaha. https://t.co/xHIo208krG
— kiko rustia (@kikorustia) February 27, 2023
Oh wow! i cant believe i'm saying this… but i agree with him on this one. https://t.co/umvUjpnSji
— Chris Tan (@imchristan) February 27, 2023
https://twitter.com/hecklerforever8/status/1630031243785179136
Why do you think you're in that job? https://t.co/il2x6UOFGh
— :› (@avc6t) February 28, 2023
https://twitter.com/jshaerrho/status/1630369555519524870?s=20
IM CRYING WE'RE ALL JUST FUCKING CLOWNS HERE A JOKE https://t.co/JJ97pGKH7r
— Minutely Tobi (@Notlion04) February 28, 2023
This is the most ironic thing i've ever read https://t.co/9A98KmXtTq
— charlie (@_charli_b3lla) February 27, 2023
Meanwhile, Migz Zubiri, the Senate President, mentioned that Padilla could conduct hearings on constitutional amendments as the committee’s chair, but the Senate is not prioritizing it now.
The House of Representatives has been discussing the possibility of a constitutional convention, with Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez expressing support for allowing foreign ownership in the economy. The Committee on Constitutional Amendments has approved a joint resolution to form a constitutional convention to amend the constitution.
This means that both the House of Representatives and the Senate will need to come to an agreement not only on whether the constitution should be amended but also on the process for doing so.
Padilla, a strong ally of former president Rodrigo Duterte, emerged as the top senatorial candidate in the 2022 elections with 26.6 million votes, running under the PDP-Laban party endorsed by the administration.
