Distinguished members of the Filipino Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, Fellow Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen! HU AM ME!

I would like to greet you today with a very apt Chinese proverb that the ancients inflict on both their friends and enemies –“ YUAN DA JIA SHEN HUO YU KUAI” -  "May you live in interesting times". The past few months saw the unfolding of a melodrama, and in a mixed metaphor, the Greeks defined as both comedy and tragedy. The histrionics in the revered institutions of both legislative houses, especially the Senate, would have been entertaining were it not for the fact that the populace could barely afford to laugh.

Indeed, in these past few months we suffered through some of the ugliest politics we have seen in our country’s history. The constant bickering and politicking has brought this country to the brink of chaos and collapse. Fortunately, we have people like you, quiet and determined businessmen and responsible community leaders who have been a constant strength in these clouded times. You gathered your community spirit and upheld the right of due process. You produced a calming effect in those times of turmoil. That is why, now we all still have a chance to do things right.

But let me digress a little and quote you from the opening lines of Charles Dickens' "Tales of Two Cities". 

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going the other way…"

Dickens could have been describing the Philippines in the recent decades. Our society is a study in contrast, a people in crisis but a people too, with hope.

 

The crisis has especially been disastrous in our efforts to improve our economy. At times that we can least afford to lose valuable time and resources, the squabbling has resulted in gridlocks and uncertainty in the market. Investors took a wait and see attitude and holding out valuable investments that could have helped our countrymen.  But what is new, the cynical among us has proffered. This condition of jumping from crisis to crisis has been the signature dance macabre for all our government these past 5 or 6 administrations. Our economists and even our political leaders have admitted that our present system of governance is not working for us. It has not only constantly failed to respond and resolve these series of predicament but in fact, the very same system of governance has produced these political-economic catastrophes.

A case in point: We were the number 2 economy in the Asian region in the early 50's, next only to Japan. Today, we rank somewhere between Vietnam and Bangladesh. We have not only stagnated but we have deteriorated. While our neighbors embraced the global markets and became competitive, we retrenched and hid behind outmoded protectionist policies - favoring a few local political-economic entrepreneurs.
It is time for change. As John F. Kennedy said: “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future”. We are at a crossroad. We need to decide the future of the country. Do we still persist in the same system that has failed us or move on to a new one that could provide us with a fresh start?

This was the reality that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo saw clearly in the early part of her regime. She then declared, long before the 2004 election that we have to restructure our system of governance that must necessarily alter our form of government and our republic.

The reason for my being here today with our team is to place before you the possible solutions to the problems which have been eating into our body politic - charter change – a complete overhaul of our Constitution which has nailed us to conditions and realities that no longer exist. The world has left us by. We need to change along with it.

Our group, the Advocacy Commission, was created by the President under EO 495, all 15 men and women plus our adviser, Dr. Jose V. Abueva, all invited by President GMA, all volunteers, all are not paid salaries for their work and all will toil for the next months – all advocating for:

· The liberalization of the Economy and the lifting of restrictions to foreign ownership; · The shift from the bicameral presidential form to a unicameral parliamentary government; and · The shift from a unitary centralized system to autonomous territories and eventually towards a Federal Republic of the Philippines.

The Advocacy Commission, Adcom, is mandated and tasked to inform and educate the people on these proposals for them to have an informed choice.

People ask, why change the system, not just the people that govern it? A fair question, but we have seen that the system of government dictates the rules of the game in terms of political process. It also dictates the playing field where the politicians must play. In other words, changing the system directly affects changing the methods of election and selection of leaders. We are changing the field which will give us the opportunity for fresh leadership and new opportunities to new emerging leaders to serve this country.
The proposal is to change from Presidential-Unitary to Parliamentary-Federal government. We are proposing this change because it increases accountability and responsibility of government officials and largely decentralize the functions of the present national government to the local governments. Decision making process has to be made at the lowest level as possible.It is a case in point that more decentralized a system is, the more it relies on lateral relationships which means negotiations and cooperation, and less of reliance on command, force or coercion. 

(Secretary General Atty. Rita Linda Jimeno, will expound on the Parliamentary form of Government and the need to liberalize the economy. I will explain more on the nuances of  the shift to autonomous regions and federalism.) Excluded from Manila Bulletin Article.

SPECIFIC FEATURES OF A PHILIPPINE FEDERAL STATE The Concom version of a Federal State has its roots on the concept of Autonomy which is very Pilipino in character. We allow the provinces and highly urbanized component cities to evolve first to an autonomous territory with the decision to evolve into such from the grassroots level. In other words, the citizens within a contiguous territory must decide in a referendum that they become completely autonomous (petitions are passed by their local legislative assemblies). Self determination is central to this decision. If a referendum is passed, within a year, Parliament must enact an organic law defining the Autonomous Territory's land area, powers, obligations and sources of revenues (taxes). If 3/5 (60%) of the provinces and component cities of the Philippines become Autonomous Territories, then the Federal Republic of the Phiippines is created.

It also provides a robust constitutional system that anchors pluralist democracy, and that it enhances democratic participation by providing dual citizenship in a compound republic. It has been argued that in smaller political units, individuals can participate more directly than in a monolithic unitary government.
CONCLUSION At this point, let me reiterate our premises that the wind of change is blowing, lets embrace change for the future of our country. We are at a defining moment of our history, we must decide what we want, as Harold Winston once commented, “He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery”. Thank you very much and good evening once again to all.