Federalism in the Philippines

Federalism in the Philippines (Filipino: Pederalismo sa Pilipinas) is a proposed form of government in the country.

History

The concept of a federal government for the Philippines was proposed as early as the Philippine Revolution with Filipino revolutionaries Emilio Aguinaldo and Apolinario Mabini suggesting dividing the islands into three federal states.

One of the first proponents of federalism in the Philippines in the 21st century is University of the Philippines professor Jose Abueva who argued that a federal form of government is necessary to more efficiently cater to the needs of the country despite its diversity. The primary goals of a constitutional amendment is to increase decentralization, greater local power and access to resources most especially among regions outside Metro Manila which has long been dubbed as rather imperial. Aside from Abueva, senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. is a prominent supporter of federalism who, since 2001, has advocated for federalism. He sees the proposed system as a key component in alleviating the Mindanao crisis and appeasing Moro insurgents. Even though the purpose of Federalism was never intended to appease any followers of any specific ideology of religion. Federalism will also hasten economic development since resource and financial mobilization is upon each states' or provinces' discretion without significant constraint from the central government.

Due to the Senate and Congress resolutions supporting charter change, an estimated 13,000 to 15,000 people gathered in Makati in 2009 to protest against administration proposals for constitutional reform. This was in line with speculations that Philippine president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo would use such amendment to extend her hold in office. In addition, Pulse Asia published in the same year their survey regarding public support towards the proposed charter change. Their report stated that four out of ten Filipino adults or 42% of all respondents opposed the amendment. Meanwhile, 25% were still undecided and 33% were in favor. Pulse Asia furthered that from 2006 to 2009, there was no significant change of sentiment against charter change, but indecision increased by 6%.

Beginning in late 2014, Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte launched a nationwide campaign promoting a charter change for federalism. During his visit to Cebu City in October of the same year, Duterte stated that federalism will facilitate better delivery of services to the people. He also saw the current system as "antiquated" where distribution of public funds is disproportionately biased towards Manila. Aside from the economic aspect, federalism is also seen as the best means to address problems in Mindanao which suffers the most from ethnoreligious conflicts. He added that the current unitary form of government has not worked well given the ethnic diversity in the country. In spite of rejecting several calls for candidacy for the 2016 presidential elections, he also cited his reforms if he were to be president. Parallel to his campaign for federalism, Duterte plans to privatize tax collection and abolish the Congress to make way for a unicameral legislature, contrary to the originally proposed Joint Resolution No. 10.

Movements for federalism were further intensified since the draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law was submitted by Philippine president Benigno Aquino III to the Congress in September 10, 2014. If approved, this law establishes the Bangsamoro as an autonomous region with its own parliamentary government and police force. Approval of the Bangsamoro structure provides federalism proponents and supporters added confidence to clamor for the national government to enact reforms towards a more decentralized system for the rest of the country.

President-elect Rodrigo Duterte stated in May 2016 that a plebiscite on the proposed replacement of the unitary state with a federal one will be held in two years. On December 7, 2016, Duterte signed Executive Order No. 10 creating a consultative committee to review the 1987 Constitution.

Initiatives

Joint Resolution No. 10
The resolution might have required the revision of 14 of the 18 Articles of the 1987 Philippine Constitution and the addition of two new articles. It sought to adopt a federal presidential bicameral form of government. This proposed resolution was backed by 12 senators of the Philippines: (Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr., Edgardo Angara, Rodolfo Biazon, Pia Cayetano, Juan Ponce Enrile, Francis "Chiz" Escudero, Jinggoy Estrada, Gregorio Honasan, Panfilo Lacson, Francis Pangilinan, Ramon "Bong" Revilla, Manuel "Manny" Villar)

In 2008, senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. proposed Joint Resolution No. 10, which would revise the current 1987 constitution and have created eleven autonomous regions out of the Philippine Republic, establishing eleven centers of finance and development in the archipelago.

The proposal would result in the creation of eleven "states" and one federal administrative region.

Within the joint resolution are certain proposals such as election of senators based on states, senators representing overseas voters and the state governor and vice-governor as one team. The Judicial and Bar Council which screens nominees to the judiciary would be abolished. Geographic locations of the three branches of the government would also be reconsidered. In the proposal, the legislative department would be transferred to what would become the State of Central Visayas while the judicial department would be moved somewhere within the State of Northern Luzon. The executive department would remain within the federal administrative region of Metro Manila.

While Pimentel Jr.'s earlier proposal for a Federal Philippines is to include the area currently governed by the Cordillera Administrative Region to the Northern Luzon state, Pimentel mentioned on August 2017 two possible setup for the Cordilleras under a federal government at the North Luzon Federalism Summit: An autonomous Cordillera region within the Northern Luzon state or the region as a separate federal state from North Luzon due to an existence of an autonomy movement for the region for the long time and a provision to give autonomy to the Cordilleras is stated in the current Constitution. He also made the same pronouncements during a live interview with journalist Karen Davila. After the abolition of the Negros Island Region on August 9, 2017, there have been several regional movements driven by the Negrenses of supporting the unification of the twin Negros provinces (Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental) under one federal state.

In January 2018, Pimentel suggested to include Malaysian-administered territory of Sabah as a state to assert Philippine claim over the disputed territory in a way "acceptable under international laws".

House Concurrent Resolution No. 15

Rep. Monico O. Puentevella on May 7, 2008, filed House Concurrent Resolution No. 15 which supported Senate Resolution No. 10 backed by 16 senators. Unlike the Nene Pimentel Senate Resolution, Puentevella included the option of holding a constitutional convention, but excluded the People's Initiative mode. Prospero Nograles, a self-proclaimed advocate of federalism, on May 1, 2008, announced: "This federal system of government is close to my heart as a Mindanaoan leader and I'm sure most of the leaders in Mindanao will agree that we have long clamored for it. Senate Resolution 10 is a pleasant surprise because the Senate has a long history of opposing any move to amend the Constitution." The joint Senate resolution called for the creation of 11 federal states in the country, by convening of Congress “into a constituent assembly for the purpose of revising the Constitution to establish a federal system of government.”

Alvarez proposal

In 2017, House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez's vision for a federal Philippines called for 14 states: 7 in Luzon, 2 in Visayas and 5 in Mindanao. He also proposed that the capital of the Philippines under a federal government should be somewhere in Negros island saying that it would be accessible to all people from the three island groups while he added that the state's territory does not have to be contiguous. Indigenous groups are in favor of the proposal, but are wary of the possibility of a 'no term limit' for politicians, which is a grave scandal in many Filipino indigenous societies, especially in the Cordilleras.

2018 House Sub-Committee 1 proposal

The Sub-Committee 1 of the House of Representatives Committee on Constitutional Amendments proposed that a federal Philippines would comprise of five states. Each states to be led by a premiere as its executive head will have a State Assembly according to the proposal. The proposal has been hit by massive criticism due to general lumping and a lack of representation. According to the proposal, politicians will have 'more than' two consecutive terms, making them eligible to run for office with no term limit.

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